Days after capturing Venezuelan President, Nicolás Maduro, and taking him to the US on drug trafficking charges, US President Donald Trump’s eyes now seem set on acquiring Greenland, “a semi-autonomous region of fellow Nato member Denmark” as a “national security priority”.

Meanwhile, as peace negotiations over Russia’s war in Ukraine continue, the threat posed by Russia in Eastern Europe remains immediate and severe.

This is why, with the current unpredictability of the Trump administration’s foreign policy, now more than ever, the UK must now align fully with its European neighbours to ensure the continent can stand on its own defensive feet.

This highlights an uncomfortable truth: that the United States, while still an ally, is no longer predictable. The renewed attention paid to Greenland by Donald Trump should be understood in this context. It reflects a worldview in which territory is treated as an asset. 

That mindset is particularly concerning because the United States already enjoys extensive defence cooperation with Denmark and Greenland. Military access, intelligence sharing, and Arctic Reach are firmly established. If that is deemed insufficient, then the issue is not European defence but strategic resource-focused ambition. 

The Arctic is fast becoming one of the most important regions in the world, as melting ice opens new shipping routes and exposes vast reserves of energy and critical minerals. Greenland sits at the heart of that transformation. 

For Europe, this should be a moment of clarity. Reliance on the assumption that allies will always share our priorities is no longer enough. Strategic autonomy does not mean isolation or hostility; it means resilience. It means ensuring that Europe can protect itself if political winds elsewhere change. 

This is why closer UK-EU defence and diplomatic cooperation is essential. Brexit altered institutional arrangements, but it did not change geography or shared risk.

Steps the UK can take

Last year, talks between the UK and EU for the UK to participate in Security Action for Europe (SAFE), a new EU €150 billion loan instrument launched in 2025 to boost European defence production and procurement, stalled and this opportunity for defence and collaboration has been missed, but only for now.

Our future demands clarity, with reliable partners. To deal with this, the UK and EU must get round the table again to negotiate on the SAFE defence procurement funding mechanism, which means both sides abandoning their unreasonable positions on the level of the UK contribution.  

The UK must also get closer to the EU single market, because that will increase the efficiency of the defence sector on both sides. Improving trade relations will also create some additional prosperity that can partly be invested in defence and which will also weaken the appeal of populist parties thriving on anger.  

We must also look at how we can cooperate more closely with the EU on jointly securing access to critical raw materials. Economic strength is inextricably tied to geopolitical safety and security. Only by addressing and securing the fault lines between the UK and the EU can we be assured of our security now and for future generations.   

The UK brings intelligence capabilities, military experience, and a nuclear deterrent. The EU brings economic scale, regulatory power, and coordinated sanctions. Together, these strengths reinforce one another. Apart, they leave gaps. Our continent. Our defence.

The global landscape is changing fast. Europe can either adapt together or face decline divided. If Britain wants to secure its future, it must play a full part in securing Europe’s. European defence is our defence, and acting together is now a matter of responsibility, not choice.