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24-01-2026
WASHINGTON: United States President Donald Trump has dropped his threat to impose tariffs on European countries opposed to his bid to take control of Greenland and ruled out the use of force to seize the territory, a stunning about-face in a dispute that has brought transatlantic relations to their lowest ebb in decades.
Trump said on Wednesday that he would not go ahead with his planned tariffs after he and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte agreed on a “framework” for a future deal involving Greenland and the Artic region.
“This solution, if consummated, will be a great one for the United States of America, and all NATO Nations,” Trump said on Truth Social.
Trump said that discussions were also underway about his plans for the “Golden Dome,” a proposed missile defence shield, and the territory.
Trump did not provide details about the deal.
In an interview with Fox News on Wednesday, Rutte provided few specifics about the framework and dodged questions about whether the US would take ownership of the island.
“We basically discussed how we can implement the president’s on protecting, yes, Greenland but not only Greenland, the whole Artic,” Rutte said.
Asked by Fox News’ Bret Baier if Denmark would continue to exercise sovereignty over Greenland under the framework, Rutte said the “issue did not come up.”
Trump has been threatening for weeks to take control of Greenland, a semi-autonomous region of Denmark, casting doubt over the future of the NATO military alliance and some $1.7 trillion in transatlantic trade.
Trump had threatened to impose a 10 percent tariff on Denmark and seven other European countries from February 1, rising to 25 percent from June 1, unless a deal was reached for the US to purchase the island.
Trump has repeatedly accused Denmark of failing to do enough to secure Greenland’s territorial waters in the Arctic, claiming that that island is vital to Washington’s security in light of China and Russia’s ambitions in the region.
Denmark has repeatedly said that Greenland is not for sale, and that any move to take the island by force would spell the end of NATO, the 32-member transatlantic alliance that includes both the US and Denmark.
‘Well-earned criticism’
Trump’s U-turn on the tariffs came just hours after he told world leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that his administration would not use force to annex Greenland even as he insisted that only the US could “secure” the vast, mineral-rich territory.
“People thought I would use force. I don’t have to use force. I don’t want to use force. I won’t use force,” Trump said, adding that he was “seeking immediate negotiations to once again discuss the acquisition of Greenland” by the US.
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen welcomed Trump’s announcement.
“The day is ending on a better note than it began. We welcome that POTUS has ruled out to take Greenland by force and paused the trade war,” Rasmussen said in a statement on social media but Rasmussen reiterated in an interview with local media that Danish sovereignty over Greenland was a “red line”.
“I’d be happy to say it to his face. I’ve said other things to his face too. I think I can handle that,” Rasmussen told public broadcaster DR.
“It’s not going to happen that the United States will own Greenland. That’s a red line,”
Other European leaders welcomed Trump’s decision to drop his threatened tariffs. (Int’l News Desk)
