Trump Exposes Himself: North America Doesn’t Belong to the US
Published in Frankfurter Rundschau
(Germany) on 14 January 2026
by Christoph Eizer (link to
original)
In the dispute over Greenland, Donald Trump used a very special logic. His argument against Denmark's claim exposes the U.S. itself.
Donald Trump has a remarkable talent for contradicting himself. In the dispute over Greenland, the U.S. president delivered an argument that calls into question the legitimacy of the United States. “The fact that they had a boat land there 500 years ago doesn't mean they own the land,”
Whoever uses this logic consistently will end up with an uncomfortable truth: The U.S. can also trace its roots back to boats landing on its shores. The Mayflower, which landed on the coast of what is today Massachusetts in 1620, is probably the most famous example. If boat trips from a few hundred years ago are not a claim of ownership, then why should this just apply for Denmark in Greenland, and not also for the European colonizers in North America?
Trump Declares America Illegitimate
The irony is so clear that you have to question whether anyone in the White House is thinking straight anymore. Trump describing Greenland as a "national security priority" and openly threatening military action means he is sawing off the very branch he is sitting on with his Denmark argument. Because if you go by his own logic, the U.S. has no legitimate claim to the very land it stands on.
Of course Trump is not interested in facts, logic or historical consistency. These are categories that have no role in Trump's world. What counts is the power of the moment, and the volume of the announcement. “We're going to do something in Greenland, whether they like it or not, because if we don't do it, Russia or China will take over Greenland, and we're not going to have Russia or China as a neighbor," he threatened at a meeting with oil executives at the White House. “I would like to make a deal the easy way but if we don't do it the easy way, we're going to do it the hard way. And by the way, I'm a big fan of Denmark too. I have to tell you, they have been very nice to me. I'm a big fan.”
The hard way is Trump's euphemism for military invasion. Just a week ago, U.S. troops invaded Venezuela and captured the dictator Nicolas Maduro. The message for Greenland was they could be next.
Experts Refute Trump's Threat Scenarios
To justify his annexation plans, Trump, the self-proclaimed "very stable genius," created a scenario that experts describe as complete nonsense. "We need that because if you take a look outside of Greenland right now, there are Russian destroyers, Chinese destroyers, and, bigger, there are Russian submarines all over the place," he claimed. "We're not gonna have Russia or China occupy Greenland, and that's what they're going to do if we don't."
Andreas Østhagen, research director for Arctic and ocean politics at the Fridtjof Nansen Institute in Oslo, considers all of this to be nonsense: “This statement makes no sense in terms of facts. There are no Russian and Chinese ships all over the place around Greenland. Russia and/or China has no capacity to occupy Greenland or take control of Greenland.”
Even the people in Greenland cannot confirm Trump's fantasies. Heating engineer Lars Vintner told the AP news agency: "I think he should mind his own business. What's he going to do with Greenland? He speaks of Russians and Chinese and everything in Greenlandic waters or in our country. We are only 57,000 people. The only Chinese I see is when I go to the fast food market. And every summer we go sailing and we go hunting and I never saw Russian or Chinese ships here in Greenland."
Donald Trump has a remarkable talent for contradicting himself. In the dispute over Greenland, the U.S. president delivered an argument that calls into question the legitimacy of the United States. “The fact that they had a boat land there 500 years ago doesn't mean they own the land,”
Whoever uses this logic consistently will end up with an uncomfortable truth: The U.S. can also trace its roots back to boats landing on its shores. The Mayflower, which landed on the coast of what is today Massachusetts in 1620, is probably the most famous example. If boat trips from a few hundred years ago are not a claim of ownership, then why should this just apply for Denmark in Greenland, and not also for the European colonizers in North America?
Trump Declares America Illegitimate
The irony is so clear that you have to question whether anyone in the White House is thinking straight anymore. Trump describing Greenland as a "national security priority" and openly threatening military action means he is sawing off the very branch he is sitting on with his Denmark argument. Because if you go by his own logic, the U.S. has no legitimate claim to the very land it stands on.
Of course Trump is not interested in facts, logic or historical consistency. These are categories that have no role in Trump's world. What counts is the power of the moment, and the volume of the announcement. “We're going to do something in Greenland, whether they like it or not, because if we don't do it, Russia or China will take over Greenland, and we're not going to have Russia or China as a neighbor," he threatened at a meeting with oil executives at the White House. “I would like to make a deal the easy way but if we don't do it the easy way, we're going to do it the hard way. And by the way, I'm a big fan of Denmark too. I have to tell you, they have been very nice to me. I'm a big fan.”
The hard way is Trump's euphemism for military invasion. Just a week ago, U.S. troops invaded Venezuela and captured the dictator Nicolas Maduro. The message for Greenland was they could be next.
Experts Refute Trump's Threat Scenarios
To justify his annexation plans, Trump, the self-proclaimed "very stable genius," created a scenario that experts describe as complete nonsense. "We need that because if you take a look outside of Greenland right now, there are Russian destroyers, Chinese destroyers, and, bigger, there are Russian submarines all over the place," he claimed. "We're not gonna have Russia or China occupy Greenland, and that's what they're going to do if we don't."
Andreas Østhagen, research director for Arctic and ocean politics at the Fridtjof Nansen Institute in Oslo, considers all of this to be nonsense: “This statement makes no sense in terms of facts. There are no Russian and Chinese ships all over the place around Greenland. Russia and/or China has no capacity to occupy Greenland or take control of Greenland.”
Even the people in Greenland cannot confirm Trump's fantasies. Heating engineer Lars Vintner told the AP news agency: "I think he should mind his own business. What's he going to do with Greenland? He speaks of Russians and Chinese and everything in Greenlandic waters or in our country. We are only 57,000 people. The only Chinese I see is when I go to the fast food market. And every summer we go sailing and we go hunting and I never saw Russian or Chinese ships here in Greenland."
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