Trump declares he will ‘100%’ implement the Greenland tariffs threat, as the EU pledges to safeguard its interests.

Donald Trump has pledged to “100%” fulfill his threat to impose tariffs on European nations that resist his demands for control over Greenland.

European allies have united in support of Greenland’s independence. The foreign minister of Denmark stressed that the US president cannot intimidate his way to acquiring the semi-autonomous Danish territory.

UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper reaffirmed the UK’s stance that the future of Greenland is to be determined solely by “Greenlanders and the Danes”.

On Monday, Trump did not dismiss the possibility of using force and insisted he would proceed with imposing tariffs on imports to the US from the UK and seven other NATO-aligned nations.

In an early Tuesday morning post on Truth Social, the US president shared that he had a “very good phone conversation” with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and confirmed a meeting of “various parties” in Switzerland this week.

He added, “Greenland is crucial for National and World Security. There is no turning back — On that, everyone agrees!”

Trump indicated he would impose a 10% tariff “on all goods” sent to the US from Britain starting February 1, rising to 25% from June 1, until an agreement is finalized for Washington to purchase Greenland from Denmark.

He mentioned the same would apply to Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Finland—all members of the NATO defense alliance formed in 1949.

When asked if he would enact the tariff threat, Trump told NBC News: “Absolutely, 100%.”

When the network inquired whether he would resort to force in acquiring the territory, the president responded with “no comment”.

Trump stated: “Europe should concentrate on the conflict with Russia and Ukraine because, to be honest, you can see what that has led them to… That’s what Europe must focus on – not Greenland.”

Denmark cautioned that any US military action in Greenland could lead to the dissolution of NATO. Recently, Greenland received backing from European NATO members, with some even deploying a few troops to Greenland last week in a gesture interpreted as symbolic.

However, Trump followed up that troop deployment announcement by stating he would impose tariffs on the eight NATO allies.

Danish foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen asserted that Europe must demonstrate to President Trump that tariff threats are “not the path forward”.

“We have boundaries that cannot be crossed,” he told Sky News. “You cannot intimidate your way to owning Greenland. I do not intend to escalate this situation.”

Chancellor of Germany Friedrich Merz commented that the tariffs are disadvantageous to all involved, expressing a desire to have a meeting with the US president during his visit to Davos for the World Economic Forum.

He remarked: “We wish to avoid escalation. We do not want a trade dispute with the United States.”

He also stated that the Trump administration should not have been surprised by NATO’s so-called reconnaissance mission over the weekend, as it had been pre-arranged and agreed upon previously.

“It was never an act of military force,” said the German chancellor.

The European Union is set to convene an emergency summit in Brussels this Thursday to discuss how to react to Trump’s recent threat to claim Greenland.

Kaja Kallas, the EU’s foreign policy chief, indicated that the bloc has “no desire to initiate conflict, but we will stand firm”.

“However, trade threats are not the solution,” Kallas added. “Sovereignty is not for sale.”

This comes as text messages between Trump and the Norwegian prime minister were made public, revealing that on Sunday the US president attributed his failure to win the Nobel Peace Prize to Norway.

In his response, seen by the BBC, Jonas Gahr Støre clarified that it is an independent committee, not the Norwegian government, that awards the prize, which last October was granted to Venezuela’s opposition leader María Corina Machado.

“Norway’s stance on Greenland is explicit. Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark, and Norway fully backs Denmark on this issue,” Støre added.

Trump also referenced the text conversation in Monday’s interview, stating: “Norway entirely controls it [the Nobel Prize] despite their assertions.

“They like to claim they have no involvement, but in reality, they are very much involved.”

Concurrently, the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) announced on Monday that multiple aircraft are en route to Pituffik Space Base in Greenland.

The joint US-Canada military defense organization emphasized that this is part of regular operations “to support a variety of pre-planned NORAD activities” and stated they had coordinated with Denmark and informed the government of Greenland.

Similar NORAD activities occurred at the base in 2022, 2023, and last year.