Davos (Switzerland) (AFP) – US President Donald Trump said Wednesday he had reached a framework of a deal that satisfies him on Greenland, as he backed down both on threats to seize the island by force from Denmark and on imposing tariffs against European allies. Trump made the startling turnaround after talks with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, who told AFP afterward that the meeting was “very good” but that “there’s still a lot of work to be done.”
Trump, attending the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos, said the framework was for a long-term deal, but he was conspicuously silent on whether it would mean US control over the Arctic island, which he has repeatedly demanded. “We have formed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic Region,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform.
Trump said he would therefore scrap tariffs of up to 25 percent that he had vowed days ago to slap starting February 1 on Denmark as well as close European allies that have sent troops to Greenland in solidarity, including Britain, France, and Germany. Trump later told reporters from outlets including AFP that the deal “gets everything we wanted” and will be in force “forever.” Asked if the United States would gain sovereignty over the vast but sparsely populated island, Trump hesitated and then said, “It’s the ultimate long-term deal.”
“I think it puts everybody in a really good position, especially as it pertains to security, and minerals and everything else,” Trump said. “It’s a deal that people jumped at, really fantastic for the USA, gets everything we wanted.” NATO spokesperson Allison Hart said that Denmark, Greenland, and the United States will negotiate on “ensuring that Russia and China never gain a foothold — economically or militarily — in Greenland” — a key stated concern of Trump.
– Some relief in Europe, markets – Global markets that had been rattled by the rift and the threat of tariffs saw relief, with Wall Street’s key indices climbing. Trump’s threats had triggered one of the biggest transatlantic crises in decades, with warnings that he could single-handedly destroy NATO through aggression against a fellow member. His apparent turnaround brought guarded relief in Denmark, long a steadfast US ally, where Trump’s bellicose language has triggered shock and feelings of betrayal.
“Trump said that he will pause the trade war, he says, ‘I will not attack Greenland’. These are positive messages,” Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen told Danish public television DR. Lokke had flown last week to Washington and met Vice President JD Vance, only to say afterward that the United States had not budged on seeking to control Greenland. But Aaja Chenmitz, one of two Greenlandic lawmakers in the Danish parliament, questioned why NATO would have a voice on the island’s mineral wealth. “NATO in no case has the right to negotiate on anything without us, Greenland. Nothing about us without us,” she posted.
In Nuuk, where authorities started handing out brochures on how to live through a crisis, 65-year-old pensioner Lis Steenholdt said that Greenland and Denmark had been firm that the island is not for sale. “You have to believe the system. That’s the only option we have right now,” Steenholdt said.
– Facing down Trump – Trump has repeatedly said that the United States, the key force in NATO, deserves Greenland as it would be forced to defend the island against Russia or China, although neither country holds any claim to the island. Addressing Davos for the first time in six years, Trump called Denmark “ungrateful” but appeared to take the threat of military action off the table. “I don’t want to use force. I won’t use force. All the United States is asking for is a place called Greenland,” Trump said.
Trump, 79, repeatedly referred to Greenland as Iceland in his speech. Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney won a standing ovation at Davos on Tuesday when he warned of a “rupture” in the global order long championed by Washington. French President Emmanuel Macron for his part said Europe would not be bullied. Trump attacked both leaders, mocking Macron for wearing sunglasses at Davos, which the French president said was because of an eye condition.
© 2024 AFP
