A former national security adviser to Donald Trump has criticised the US President's rhetoric on Greenland. John Bolton, who served during Trump's first presidential term, said that even discussing the use of force against the Danish territory could damage America's alliances and credibility within NATO.
Speaking to NDTV's Vishnu Som, Bolton said Trump's threats, including refusing to rule out military action to change Greenland's status, represented a dangerous departure from established US foreign policy.
‘Unthinkable'
Bolton said Trump's approach to Greenland risked undermining both US diplomacy and long-standing defence arrangements with Denmark. “I think the way Trump is approaching this is just disastrous for the United States. Even talking about using military force against a treaty ally like Denmark and the people of Greenland is unthinkable. Unthinkable until Trump thinks it up and starts talking about it,” Bolton said, adding that Trump had first raised the idea of Greenland with him in 2018.
Bolton said that the US has a long history of strategic involvement in Greenland, including maintaining 16 military bases there during World War II to protect North Atlantic convoys. He also cited the 1951 defence agreement between the US and Denmark as an existing framework capable of addressing Washington's security concerns without resorting to public confrontation.
NATO At Risk
Asked whether Trump's stance could threaten NATO itself, Bolton said such a scenario could not be ruled out if the US attempted to seize or separate Greenland from Denmark. “I think it could. It's just inconceivable that we would do anything like that,” he said, adding that public backing for such action in the United States was extremely limited.
“There's a poll out this morning that shows exactly 8% of the people of the US are in favour of using military force against Greenland. I'm not sure that 8% knows where Greenland is, but it's a tiny number of people,” Bolton said.
While expressing confidence that Trump would ultimately stop short of military action, Bolton said that the damage from such rhetoric was already being felt. He said Trump had “no concept that his behaviour harms the United States as it is now, and costs us the trust and confidence and good faith, not just within NATO but around the world.”
Rhetoric Without Action
Pressed on whether Trump had led himself into a position that would require action, Bolton dismissed that notion, pointing to the president's past behaviour.
“Trump has an amazing capacity to engage in that kind of rhetoric, not get what he wants, but still declare victory,” Bolton said. “And I'm confident we can find something here that will allow him to say, ‘I got exactly what I wanted,' even if it's not anything close to what he wanted.”
Arctic Security And The China-Russia Factor
Bolton said Greenland's importance had increased due to climate change and the resulting transformation of Arctic shipping routes. “With the melting of the polar ice cap, things become possible that have not been possible for a long time,” he said, highlighting that the opening of the Northwest Passage has heightened both Russian and Chinese activity in the region. “Imagine a Chinese fleet coming through the Bering Strait between Alaska and Siberia, sailing across the Arctic and emerging in the North Atlantic. That should be enough to get everybody's attention,” he said.
Bolton Calls Trump's Tariff Policy “Another Disaster”
Bolton criticised Trump's expanding tariff regime while responding to a question on Iran-related sanctions and their potential impact on India.
He said that the proposed penalties, including a 50% tariff on Russian oil and a further 25% levy for trading with Iran, risk complicating strategic ties.
Calling the policy “another disaster for the United States,” Bolton said, “I don't think it's gained us anything economically.”
"I think it's certainly harmed our political position," he said.
He suggested the Iran-linked tariff could amount to “bluster,” adding that such measures don't “produce anything positive for the United States, only produce negatives.”
