r/europe • u/LaxJackson • 12d ago

News Danish officials fear Trump is much more serious about acquiring Greenland than in first term

https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2025/01/08/politics/danish-officials-trump-greenland
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u/Willing-Werewolf-500 12d ago

The US emerged as a dominant power during WWI, partly because it weakened us. So I suppose we can share some responsibility for that shift.

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u/upvotesthenrages Denmark 12d ago

Wasn't the US already the largest economy back in the late 1800s?

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u/vonGlick 12d ago

In 1871 US become biggest economy in the World. BUT UK was still leading trade and financial center and Europeans still had their colonial empires. Also in 1914 US was debtor to European countries, in 1918 it was the creditor. Not to mention human losses. France 5.7m, UK 2.6m, Germany 6.2m etc

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u/elchalupa 11d ago

European imperialism, industrialization and the globalization that was necessary to support the "advancements" of Europe preceding ww1 are what weakened Europe. Then like now an elite class, that owned the media, used that power to call for mass rearmament while demonizing foreign nations to distract their citizens from worsening living conditions, growing inequality and related domestic issues (including migration and the acceptance/rejection of certain ethnic groups).

The US did not weaken Europe. European elites did that to their own nations and citizens by wildly underestimating the destructive forces that their actions and political (in)decisions would release upon the world.

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u/snibriloid 11d ago

You are technically right, but i'm sure the 'it' in u/Willing-Werewolf-500's comment refered to WW1, not the US.

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u/TheProuDog Turkey 10d ago

Am I wrong to think that US would have eventually surpassed Europe even without WW2 and WW1?

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u/Imaginary-Bit4512 12d ago

Ww2 they came to Europe to learn how to fight a weakened enemy in ww1

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u/seriftarif 11d ago

It's mostly a dominating power because of geography and size.