Trump threatens tariffs on countries opposing US control of Greenland

US President Donald Trump has once again cast Greenland at the centre of his geopolitical imagination, warning that countries refusing to endorse Washington’s claim over the vast Arctic island could face punitive tariffs — even as American lawmakers arrived in Copenhagen seeking to cool the rising temperature between allies, the Al Jazeera reported.

Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has repeatedly declared that US control over Greenland — a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark — is not merely desirable but essential. Earlier this week, he went so far as to say that anything short of American possession of the island would be “unacceptable”.

According to Al Jazeera, Trump on Friday tied the Greenland dispute to his broader use of trade pressure while speaking at a rural healthcare event. Recalling past threats of pharmaceutical tariffs against European allies, he said he could do the same over Greenland, suggesting countries that do not “go along” could face tariffs because the island is vital to US national security.

Trump has long framed Greenland as a strategic prize — a critical outpost guarding the Arctic approaches, rich in untapped mineral resources and vital, in his telling, to future defence initiatives such as the so-called “Golden Dome”. While he has previously refused to rule out the use of force to secure control of the island, this marks the first time he has openly floated tariffs as a tool to press the issue.

Later in the day, Trump doubled down, telling reporters that talks with NATO were under way. “We need Greenland very badly for national security,” he said, warning that without it the US would face a dangerous gap in its defences.

In Nuuk, Greenland’s capital, Denmark’s Joint Arctic Command struck a calmer note. Major-General Soren Andersen, speaking aboard a Danish warship, dismissed the notion of any looming confrontation between NATO allies. His focus, he said, remained squarely on Russia, not the United States.

“I don’t see a NATO ally attacking another NATO ally,” Andersen said, describing such scenarios as hypothetical. Denmark’s defence preparations, he added, were routine and conducted in close cooperation with NATO.

As tensions simmered, European allies quietly bolstered their presence in the Arctic, dispatching small numbers of troops to Greenland ahead of the annual Arctic Endurance NATO exercise, which tests forces under harsh winter conditions. Denmark’s Arctic Command has invited the United States to take part in the drills, though it remains unclear whether Washington will accept the invitation.

Tasked with defending Greenland and the Faroe Islands, Denmark’s Arctic Command conducts surveillance, search-and-rescue operations and long-range patrols across one of the world’s most forbidding environments, even deploying the famed Sirius dog-sledge patrol for extended Arctic missions. Andersen said there were no Chinese or Russian ships near Greenland, though a Russian research vessel was operating hundreds of nautical miles away.

“We expect an increase in Russian activity in the coming years,” he said, underlining the need to strengthen NATO’s northern defences.

Diplomatic efforts to ease the strain have intensified. Earlier this week, the foreign ministers of Denmark and Greenland met US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington. While the talks failed to bridge fundamental differences, they did yield an agreement to establish a working group — an arrangement later described in sharply different terms by Copenhagen and the White House.

European leaders have insisted that Greenland’s future can only be decided by Denmark and Greenland themselves. Denmark, for its part, has announced plans to increase its military presence on the island in close coordination with allies.

On Friday, a bipartisan delegation of 11 US lawmakers arrived in Copenhagen in a bid to “lower the temperature”. Led by Democratic Senator Chris Coons, the group met Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenlandic leader Jens-Frederik Nielsen, as well as parliamentarians from both territories. The lawmakers sought to reassure their hosts that Congress views Greenland as an ally, not a possession.

“There’s a lot of rhetoric, but not a lot of reality in Washington right now,” Coons said after the meetings, adding that the delegation hoped to bring a cooler tone back home.

Even as diplomats worked behind the scenes, Trump’s special envoy to Greenland, Jeff Landry, struck a confident note, announcing plans to visit the territory in March. “I do believe there’s a deal that should and will be made,” Landry said in a television interview, insisting that the president had made his expectations clear.