Zelenskyy Offers to Sink Russian Ships Near Greenland, Positioning Ukraine as Europe's Arctic Defender
At Davos, the Ukrainian president proposed extending his country's proven naval warfare capabilities to protect NATO waters from Russian aggression. The offer reframes the Greenland debate around who can actually defend it.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has made a pointed offer to European allies: if Russian warships are sailing freely around Greenland, Ukraine can help sink them.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday, Zelenskyy proposed extending Ukraine's proven naval warfare capabilities to the Arctic theater, positioning his country as a strategic asset for European security beyond its own borders.
The Offer
"If Russian warships are sailing freely around Greenland, Ukraine can help," Zelenskyy said, according to UNITED24 Media. "We have the expertise and weapons to ensure not one of those ships remains. They can sink near Greenland just as they do near Crimea. No problem. We have the tools and people."
The offer came as European nations grapple with how to respond to renewed American interest in Greenland and growing Russian and Chinese activity in the Arctic. Trump has argued that Denmark lacks the capacity to defend the territory, framing potential US acquisition as a national security imperative.
Zelenskyy's proposal reframes the debate: rather than debating who should own Greenland, Europe should focus on who can defend it.
Ukraine's Naval Track Record
Ukraine's offer carries weight. Despite having no traditional navy to speak of at the start of the full-scale invasion, Ukrainian forces have effectively neutralized Russia's Black Sea Fleet through a combination of naval drones, anti-ship missiles, and creative asymmetric tactics. According to tracking data, Ukraine has destroyed or damaged over two dozen Russian naval vessels, including the flagship cruiser Moskva.
The success has forced Russia to withdraw the bulk of its Black Sea Fleet from Crimea to more distant ports, a strategic humiliation for a country that once dominated the waterway. The tactics Ukraine has developed could theoretically be adapted to Arctic conditions, where Russia has been expanding its military presence.
A Challenge to European Hesitation
The proposal also served as a pointed critique of European responses to the Greenland situation. At Davos, Zelenskyy questioned the value of symbolic troop deployments, asking: "If you send 14 or 40 soldiers to Greenland, what is that for?"
According to Euronews, Zelenskyy described Europe as a "fragmented kaleidoscope of small and middle powers" struggling to develop independent strategic capabilities while awaiting American direction. He invoked the film Groundhog Day, saying the continent remains caught in repetitive failure.
The criticism reflects a broader frustration among EU allies about the gap between European rhetoric on defense and actual capability. While the EU has committed over 216 billion euros to Ukraine, questions remain about whether the bloc can project power beyond its immediate borders.
Arctic Security in Focus
Zelenskyy's timing was deliberate. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte has acknowledged the growing threat in the Arctic, agreeing with Trump that more must be done to counter Russian and Chinese influence in the High North. The region has become a hotbed for hybrid activity as retreating ice opens new commercial and military possibilities.
As our earlier analysis noted, Russia has invested heavily in revamping Arctic military bases even as its resources are stretched by the war in Ukraine. The Kremlin views the Northern Sea Route as a strategic asset and has been asserting control over waters that Western navies may need to transit.
For Europe, Zelenskyy's offer presents an opportunity: a battle-tested partner with demonstrated capabilities against Russian naval assets, eager to prove its value to potential NATO allies.
The Strategic Calculation
Zelenskyy's proposal is not purely altruistic. Ukraine seeks NATO membership and has been working to demonstrate that it would be a net contributor to alliance security, not merely a liability requiring protection.
By offering to solve a problem that European navies are not yet equipped to handle, Ukraine positions itself as a force multiplier rather than a burden. The message to Brussels and other European capitals: Ukraine's fight against Russia is not just about defending Ukrainian territory. It is about defending the European order itself.
Whether European leaders will take up the offer remains unclear. But Zelenskyy has succeeded in shifting the conversation from whether Greenland should be protected to who is actually capable of protecting it.
What Comes Next
The Ukrainian leader made clear that any such deployment would require a formal request and, implicitly, progress toward NATO membership. The conditional nature of the offer keeps pressure on European capitals to accelerate Ukraine's integration into Western security structures.
For now, Europe continues to debate while Ukraine continues to demonstrate what effective resistance to Russian aggression looks like. The chess pieces in the Arctic are moving. Kyiv has offered to help play the game.
January 23, 2026