US national security expert warns of China taking Greenland from the inside
WASHINGTON, DC: Alexander Gray, Chief Executive Officer of American Global Strategies and a former top national security official has warned that China is using a "playbook" of economic pressure to gain a foothold in Greenland as it moves toward independence.
He argues that Donald Trump’s focus on the island is not a random idea, but a vital move to protect the US from Chinese and Russian military threats.
National security expert says China targeting Greenland from inside
Alexander Gray warns that as Greenland seeks independence from Denmark, it becomes a prime target for Chinese 'malign influence.'
He compares the situation to small nations like Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, and Tonga, where China has used 'dual-use' investments to gain military advantages.
Gray notes that the US already had to stop China from buying Greenlandic airports in 2018, warning that 'what happens when an independent Greenland, 57,000 people... quickly becomes subsumed by Chinese malign influence like in the Solomon Islands?'
He fears that without US intervention, 'the Chinese will continue their undersea predation unopposed' and that 'well-intentioned as they are, they will not be able to resist that type of Chinese coercion.'
Expert lauds Trump's 'sound' strategic logic
Gray argued that “if you separate the rhetoric, you separate the day-to-day news items” on how Trump says things rather than why, his strategic logic is 'extraordinarily sound.'
He pointed out that US presidents since the 1860s have tried to acquire the island while stating that 'France or the United Kingdom, could gain a foothold in Greenland and threaten the east coast of the United States and pose an existential threat to our sovereignty and our independence.'
By bringing this to the forefront, Gray believes the president has made 'the security of the Arctic a key talking point' that will protect American interests for decades regardless of who is in the White House.
Expert shares long-term plan to secure the Arctic
To stop China from taking over from the inside, Gray suggests the US should offer Greenland a "Compact of Free Association."
This would allow Greenland to be independent while giving the US 'unlimited, unrestricted access to their land, air, and sea' and the 'right to deny any other power that same access.'
He believes this is the only way to prevent a future where 'Chinese state-owned enterprise money' floods the system and creates a 'pro-China party' in Greenland's government.
Gray concluded that the US must 'take full advantage of our access agreements' now to ensure we aren't 'behind the eight ball' when Greenland eventually leaves Danish protection.
