Retired 4-star general Wesley Clark on CNN on January 14, 2026 (Image: Screengrab via CNN / YouTube)
Retired U.S. General Wesley Clark, former Supreme Allied Commander of Europe, said that there is no reason for the United States to take over Greenland to accomplish national security goals.
Greenland, which already has a Space Force base on the island, has called in soldiers from Denmark and Sweden to support it in a possible military conflict with the U.S.
"It would certainly seem to be the case that you could set up an arrangement and put the bases in that you want. You could do the patrols. You can bring the Danes in with you in a joint headquarters. You could call it national security control of Denmark, [but it] doesn't have to necessarily mean ownership. Just have the control. You could also set up the same arrangement with, let's say, economic exploration of minerals in Greenland. So there are different ways to go at this other than simply saying you've got to own the territory," Clark explained.
CNN host Boris Sanchez was curious about why Trump would pursue a kind of hostile takeover of a NATO ally.
Clark noted that Trump has indicated it makes him more comfortable to own Greenland because he thinks that Russia and China will take the Arctic island. Doing so would trigger a war with NATO, which includes the United States.
"But, you know, he's the president. That's what he wants to do. There are alternatives to this that would be more palatable. I think it has put a lot of stress on NATO," he added.
Clark explained that he's not aware of the specific details about Trump's plans to understand why simply "putting assets in Greenland would be less effective than, let's say, legal ownership of the territory. the territory."
"I do feel that these relationships in the Arctic are changing," he continued. "Russia is up there, and they're challenging us. China wants the Northwest Passage over the top of Siberia to get to Europe on a shorter route. There's a lot of challenges in the Arctic coming. And the United States really hasn't prepared for it very well."
He noted that the U.S. doesn't have icebreakers like Russia does.
"We need to work in the Arctic, but we can have all the access we need under the existing arrangements in Greenland, it seems to me," Clark said. "So, maybe there's something here that we don't see."
He added that he hopes the meeting with Secretary of State Marco Rubio "turns out the right way and gives us whatever shred of additional control that we need."
NATO could set up an Arctic command, he said, as an option.
"But again, this proliferates commands, and the Pentagon has been trying to reduce the number of commands. But there are many ways to go after this," he closed.
Watch the segment below:
- YouTube youtu.be
