Bolton Says Trump’s Greenland Statements Are Calculated to Provoke, Not Reflect Policy

During Euronews’ special coverage of the NATO summit in Ankara, former U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton characterized President Trump’s recent remarks on Greenland as emblematic of his political style rather than a substantive shift in American foreign policy.

At the NATO summit, Trump reiterated his position that Greenland should fall under U.S. sovereignty, citing the Arctic territory’s strategic importance to national security and criticizing Denmark for inadequate defensive preparations.

Bolton, who served as Trump’s national security adviser during his first term, noted that the president has a longstanding pattern of making incendiary comments primarily to capture public attention.

“He’s trolling people,” Bolton told Euronews. “Why does he talk about taking Greenland? Because it drives people crazy. That’s what it’s about.”

Reflecting on his White House tenure, Bolton recalled an incident where Trump intentionally dictated a portion of a social media message in all capital letters, allegedly to elicit a response.

Bolton further contended that NATO is not obligated to hold leader summits on an annual basis.

Despite Trump’s reproaches of several allies—including Spain, which he termed a “wasted cause”—Bolton assessed the summit’s outcomes favorably.

“I think the final statement that was agreed unanimously is a good statement,” he said, adding that the result for Ukraine was “very positive,” even though President Volodymyr Zelenskyy “did not get everything he wanted.”

In a bilateral session, the U.S. president recognized that his rapport with the Ukrainian leader had improved following an earlier confrontation in the Oval Office in 2025.

Bolton also expressed doubt about the necessity of yearly NATO leader gatherings.

Observing that the summit communiqué omitted any mention of a 2027 meeting in Albania, he maintained that the alliance is under no mandate to convene each year.

“There is no requirement for a NATO summit every year,” Bolton said. “If you skipped a year or two, it wouldn’t be the end of the world.”

He proposed that reducing the frequency of summits could mitigate political instability amid uncertainty over Trump’s future engagement with the alliance.

The U.S. president had been disparaging of allies en route to Ankara but adopted a more conciliatory tone at his closing press conference, describing them largely as “good people.”

“Who knows what Donald Trump’s mood will be a year from now?” he told Euronews.

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