U.S. President Donald Trump suggested Friday he might impose tariffs on countries that do not support the U.S. controlling Greenland. The statement came during an unrelated White House event on rural health care, where Trump recounted threatening European allies with tariffs on pharmaceuticals.
Trump stated, "I may do that for Greenland too. 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." This marks the first time Trump has publicly mentioned using tariffs as a tool to acquire the Arctic island.
For months, Trump has asserted the U.S. should control Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of Denmark, a NATO ally. He stated earlier this week that anything less than U.S. control of the island would be unacceptable.
The proposal to acquire Greenland has faced resistance from both Denmark and Greenlandic officials. A bipartisan Congressional delegation recently sought to ease tensions in Copenhagen. Earlier this week, the foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland met in Washington with U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. While the meeting did not resolve the existing disagreements, it did result in an agreement to establish a working group to further discuss the matter. The purpose and scope of this working group remain undefined.
The U.S. has a long-standing strategic interest in Greenland, dating back to World War II. In 1946, the Truman administration offered Denmark $100 million to purchase the island, an offer that was rejected. Greenland is strategically located between North America and Europe and possesses significant natural resources.
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