Russia is watching with glee as US President Donald Trump's push to take over Greenland deepens divisions with Europe, even though his moves could have serious security consequences for Moscow, which wants to strengthen its own presence in the Arctic.
The Kremlin has said Trump would make history if he took control of Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark. President Vladimir Putin's special envoy, Kirill Dmitriyev, has hailed the "collapse of the transatlantic alliance." Former President Dmitry Medvedev joked that Europe would become poorer.
Trump's criticism of Greenland is conspicuously absent at a time when Russia wants to keep him on its side so that the end of the war in Ukraine will be on Moscow's terms, even though traditional Russian allies, Venezuela and Iran, have also come under his attack.
"There are international experts who believe that if he resolves the issue of annexing Greenland, Trump will certainly go down in history. And not only in US history, but also in world history," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.
“It’s hard to disagree with these experts.”
The daily newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets wrote that it was a real pleasure to watch Europe "completely lost" after Trump said he would impose increasing tariffs on goods imported from certain European countries until the United States is allowed to buy Greenland.
“Make America Great Again (MAGA) = Make Denmark Small Again (MDSA) = Make Europe Poor Again (MEPA). Has that idea finally entered your head, you idiots?” said Medvedev, who is now deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council.
Dmitriyev, who is involved in talks with the US on the war in Ukraine, has mocked European leaders in posts on social media. “The collapse of the transatlantic union. Finally - something really worth discussing in Davos,” wrote Dmitriyev, who is due to meet with US envoys for Ukraine this week at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort.
Dmitriev also wrote on X Network that "Putin understands American logic on Greenland," with a link to a speech in which Putin said that American ambitions regarding Greenland have deep historical roots.
Russian commentators say Trump's behavior is putting unprecedented pressure on the NATO military alliance, a long-time enemy of Moscow, and could cause economic and diplomatic problems for the European Union and Britain, which Moscow sees as obstacles to Russia "getting its way" regarding Ukraine.
An article published in Rossiiskaya Gazeta, the official newspaper of the Russian government, asked whether differences over Greenland could mean the end of NATO.
Sergei Markov, a former Kremlin adviser, said Moscow should help Trump achieve his ambitions "because almost all of Trump's enemies are also enemies of Russia."
Despite the satisfaction, Moscow is treading a fine line, as Trump's moves could also affect Russia's own ambitions in the Arctic, a region rich in natural resources that Russia considers strategically important.
Russia is taking a cautious approach to Trump's suggestion that Moscow poses a threat to Greenland - part of his rationale for wanting the US to take control of the island.
The Foreign Ministry said last week that it was unacceptable for the West to continue accusing Russia and China of posing a threat to Greenland.
However, for Russia, Ukraine is a higher priority than Greenland, where the US already has a military presence.
The transatlantic rift over Greenland, which includes the countries that financed and armed Kiev, could play to Russia's advantage - potentially spilling over into other areas of policy and pushing Ukraine into the background.
Some Russian commentators suggest that Trump's behavior heralds a new world order without rules, which could benefit Moscow. Others, however, raise alarm about the unpredictability of his behavior, recalling the recent arrest of Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro.
They also warn that Trump, who claims the US will re-establish dominance in the Western Hemisphere, has not shown a willingness to let other countries have their own spheres of influence. “Russia can have its own sphere of influence only through force,” Markov said.
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