The White House is already treating Greenland like a U.S. territory with Trump planting the flag
They're soft launching their imperial dreams.
Last time we checked, there was no press conference, diplomatic announcement, or negotiation update on Greenland. Yet, Donald Trump posted an image of himself and his goons hoisting the American flag over Greenland’s soil. And the White House followed.
This week, Trump probably forgot to take his sleeping pills again. At around 1 am on Jan. 20, he posted an AI-generated image of himself standing on Greenlandic soil, hoisting the American flag. He is flanked by JD Vance and Marco Rubio, standing triumphantly in a frozen landscape, planting the flag. Meanwhile, a sign in the foreground reads “GREENLAND – U.S. TERRITORY – EST. 2026.”
Not “might be” or “proposed,” the board says “established.” It almost looks like a colonial postcard from 1904. Trump first shared the image on Truth Social, then the official White House X account reposted it. They just lent state authority to what would otherwise be dismissed as a deranged meme, and people aren’t cheering.
Greenland went from negotiation to annexation in a matter of one AI post
The post came amid escalating tensions between the U.S. and Greenland after Trump repeatedly suggested the U.S. should “own” Greenland for national security reasons. Denmark and Greenland have categorically rejected the claims. But a meeting between foreign ministers of the two sovereigns with Vance and Rubio failed terribly.
European leaders have warned that Trump’s rhetoric has crossed from strategic discussion into coercion. And now, we get an AI slop of Trump already declaring his control over Greenland. The mocked-up image presents Greenland as a fait accompli. It shows the land already absorbed, branded, and dated. This isn’t a bargaining posture. It’s a pre-announcement, and the White House has crossed the line with this one.
Trump keeps posting dumb things online every once in a while on his Truth Social. But the White House’s choosing to amplify his stupidity is disappointing. By sharing the image, they transformed a personal fantasy into official government communication. It blurred the line between propaganda and policy, and trolling and threat.
X users aren’t excusing the White House for this one
What the White House is forgetting is that foreign ministries don’t trade in AI conquest posters. And governments don’t meme territorial annexation unless they want the message to land. And it landed terribly. Danish politicians called the post reckless and destabilizing, and social media did not take it well.
The image closely resembles classic imperial imagery, depicting land as a prize and sovereignty as irrelevant. As one user on X put it: “Trump is not ‘negotiating.’ He is telegraphing conquest like it is merch.” The post cannot be dismissed as “just a joke” anymore, either.
Because governments don’t joke about annexing allied territory. You cannot brand annexation like a product launch and use AI to simulate conquest. One user put the frustration into words:
This is scary that the White House account, which would monetise off this, has trolled Greenland on a social media account with the intent to cite hate and aggression against those who stand with Denmark. This is mental & a shocking period of time to be alive!
So, people didn’t see the post as a meme. When a superpower starts treating borders as editable images, it’s not just a meme anymore. People see a U.S. president advertising territorial acquisition before negotiations conclude, or even begin. They see an administration replacing diplomacy with spectacle and intimidation. As one reaction put it, “Sovereignty is just a graphic now.”
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