President Trump Wednesday claimed he had “formed the framework of a future deal” on Greenland and backed away from his threat to impose tariffs on European allies who opposed the U.S. taking over the Arctic island.
Trump said he forged what he called a Greenland breakthrough during talks with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, although he didn’t reveal any details of the supposed deal.
There was no sign that any deal includes the U.S. winning control of Greenland, which Trump has repeatedly insisted is a crucial American need.
“This is really fantastic for the USA,” Trump said. “It gets us everything we needed to get.”
“It puts everyone in a really good position,” he added. “It’s forever.”
Danish officials cheered the reports of a deal to dial back tensions on Greenland, which it rules as a semiautonomous territory. Denmark insists Greenland’s future is up to its people and has ruled out any deal to cede the island to the U.S.
“What is important for us is that we end this in a way that respects the Greenlandic people,” Foreign Minister Lars Rasmussen said.
The stunning claim came just a couple of hours after Trump left no room for anything less than a takeover of Greenland, fanning the flames of discord that allies feared could lead to the collapse of the Western alliance.
Even as he said he wouldn’t grab Greenland by force, Trump stridently declared that the Arctic island rightfully belongs to the U.S. because it sits in the Western Hemisphere and claimed only the U.S. has the military power to protect it.
“This enormous, unsecured island is actually part of North America. … that’s our territory,” Trump said in a speech that ran for about an hour and 15 minutes. “It’s the United States alone that can protect that great piece of ice,” he added.
Trump claimed that the U.S. saved Greenland from the Nazis during World War II. He suggested that it should have never withdrawn military forces from icy island.
In a possible sign of conciliation, Trump seemingly agreed not to militarily attack Greenland even as he bragged about the recent attack on Venezuela that deposed President Nicolas Maduro.
“I don’t want to use force, I won’t use force,” Trump said. “All we’re asking for is a place called Greenland.”
He demanded that Denmark agree to negotiate a deal to sell Greenland, which he appeared to confuse with the nearby nation of Iceland at one point, and warned of unspecified consequences if they don’t fall in line.
“You can say yes, and we will be very appreciative. Or you can say no, and we will remember,” Trump said.
Brushing off a delayed arrival after Air Force One suffered minor mechanical issues, Trump headed straight to the tony town in the Swiss Alps to deliver the pugnacious speech filled with economic half-truths, brash threats and insults to allies.
Trump had threatened to slap steep tariffs on Denmark and seven other allies unless they cave and agree to hand over Greenland, a concession the European leaders say they won’t make.
Trump said the tariffs would start at 10% and climb to 25% in June, rates that would be high enough to increase costs and slow growth on both sides of the Atlantic.
Europeans said they might respond in kind or scrap a planned trade deal if Trump were to go ahead with the new retaliatory tariffs.
Before the Greenland threats cast a shadow over Davos, Trump had planned to mostly focus the speech on economic domestic policy, officials said.
He did repeat a familiar laundry list of supposed accomplishments of his first year back in the White House, including claims he ended inflation and engineered an unprecedented economic boom. He also boasted about his immigration crackdown and sending National Guard troops to American cities.
“I come with truly phenomenal news from America,” Trump started his speech. “People are doing well, and they’re very happy with me.”
In fact, Trump is burdened with abysmal approval ratings especially on his handling of the economy, with most polls showing him about 20% underwater on the issue.
