An America-First Warning: Invading Greenland Would Hurt the United States Most

Step-by-step: what happens when you threaten a NATO ally

By Cliff Potts, CSO, and Editor-in-Chief of WPS News

If you believe in “America First,” then you should oppose any U.S. move to invade Greenland. Not because you love Denmark. Not because you care about fancy international meetings. But because an invasion would damage the United States in ways that would hit American families, American troops, and American power—fast.

Let’s walk through what happens, step by step.

Step 1: The U.S. threatens a NATO ally.
Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Denmark is in NATO. So Greenland is tied to NATO security commitments. When President Trump says U.S. “control” of Greenland is “unacceptable” to him, that’s not tough talk—it’s a threat against allied sovereignty.

Step 2: Denmark and Europe respond the only way they can—by preparing defenses.
Denmark has already announced an expanded military presence and exercises in Greenland, working with allies. They are not doing this for fun. They are doing it because they have to take U.S. rhetoric seriously.

Step 3: NATO breaks in half politically, even if it doesn’t formally dissolve.
NATO runs on trust. Once allies believe the U.S. might grab territory or use force against them, trust collapses. And if NATO can’t trust the U.S., NATO cannot function the way it was built to function.

Step 4: America loses the moral high ground—and that costs real money and real leverage.
The U.S. spends decades telling the world that borders can’t be changed by force. If the U.S. violates that rule, we hand every dictator a free excuse. Russia and China won’t even have to invent propaganda. We’ll have written it for them.

Step 5: The U.S. triggers legal and treaty chaos that backfires on U.S. forces.
The U.S. already has a defense framework with Denmark covering Greenland. There is a standing agreement for U.S. defense cooperation there. If your goal is security access, the legal tools already exist. Invading would shred the legitimacy of those tools and invite court fights, sanctions, and global pushback.

Step 6: U.S. troops get stuck holding an icy territory while America’s real problems pile up.
An invasion is not a “quick win.” It becomes a permanent occupation problem: logistics, basing, security, protests, sabotage risks, and political fallout. That means more deployments, more cost, and more strain on the military—while the border, the economy, and domestic stability keep burning at home.

Step 7: Europe re-arms without us and builds new security arrangements that cut America out.
This is the part “America First” people should fear most. If Europe concludes the U.S. is not reliable, Europe will build alternatives. You don’t get to be the leader of the West by threatening the West.

Step 8: Russia wins without firing a shot.
The Kremlin’s dream is a divided NATO and a distracted America. A U.S. move against Greenland would hand Russia that outcome on a silver platter—while the U.S. pays the bill.

So here is the “America First” bottom line:

If Trump invades Greenland, the United States doesn’t look strong. It looks reckless. We lose allies, lose trust, lose legitimacy, and lose strategic focus. And we trade a working defense relationship for an international crisis that makes America weaker.

If you truly want to put America first, start by refusing to follow anyone—anyone—into a war against our own allies.

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References (APA)

Danish Ministry of Defence. (2026, January). The Danish Armed Forces expand their presence and continue exercises in Greenland in close cooperation with allies.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization. (1949). The North Atlantic Treaty.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization. (2025, November 12). Collective defence and Article 5.

Reuters. (2026, January 14). NATO would be “more formidable” with U.S. control of Greenland, Trump says.

TIME. (2026, January 14). Denmark beefs up military presence in Greenland amid “fundamental disagreement” with U.S.

Yale Law School, Avalon Project. (1951). Defense of Greenland: Agreement between the United States and the Kingdom of Denmark.