US President Donald Trump says he may implement tariffs on countries opposing Washington’s controlling of Greenland as he remains stern in his stance to take over the Arctic island by “any means necessary”.
– Donald Trump suggested on Friday that he may punish countries that do not back the US controlling of Greenland with tariffs as a bipartisan Congressional delegation visited the Danish capital, Copenhagen, to display unity and ease tensions.
– The US president has for months insisted that Washington should control Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark, citing national security reasons.
– Trump said that anything other than Arctic island being in US hands is “unacceptable”.
– During an unrelated event at the White House about rural health care, Trump recounted how he had threatened European allies with tariffs on pharmaceuticals, noting that he may once more deploy the strategy to achieve this objective.
– “I may do that for Greenland too,” Trump said. “I may put a tariff on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security. So I may do that”
– European leaders have insisted that is only for Denmark and Greenland to decide on matters concerning the territory, and Denmark said this week that it was increasing its military presence in Greenland in cooperation with allies.
– The White House says all options are on the table, including seizing the island by military force.
– Trump said he intends to take it one way or another “whether they (European lawmakers) like it or not”.
– The dispute is looming large in the lives of Greenlanders, who refute Trump’s narrative of an imminent Chinese and Russian threat, saying the biggest threat on their country comes from none other than Washington.
– Greenland’s prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, said on Tuesday that “if we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark. We choose NATO. We choose the Kingdom of Denmark. We choose the EU.”