President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the United States had agreed to a “framework of a future deal” regarding Greenland following his meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, but he did not provide specifics.
The president did not reveal details of the future agreement but said that as a result, the U.S. will be holding off on implementing the 10% tariffs on several European countries, as he recently threatened to do if they did not go along with his plan.
WITH ATTENTION ON TRUMP AND GREENLAND AT DAVOS, IRAN FALLS UNDER THE RADAR
“Based upon a very productive meeting that I have had with the Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte, we have formed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic Region,” he said on Truth Social. “This solution, if consummated, will be a great one for the United States of America, and all NATO Nations.”
Trump’s remarks, while vague, appear to suggest that the two sides have figured out an off-ramp suitable for both the president and Europe. The president did not specify a timeline for this future proposal or what would be included in it.
In recent weeks, the president and his administration had strengthened their rhetoric regarding taking ownership of Greenland due to its importance for national security given its proximity to the Arctic.
The U.S. already has one base on Greenland, which is an autonomous territory within Denmark, and both have expressed a willingness to work with the U.S. to increase its national security and defense infrastructure.
On Monday, he declined to rule out using military force to achieve his objective, but on Wednesday did just that during his address at the World Economic Forum.
The Trump administration’s discussion about taking control of the frozen island with a population of roughly 56,000 people, angered officials in both countries and across Europe. European leaders, who were not going along with the president’s plan, deployed troops to Greenland in an act of solidarity.
WHY TRUMP IS SO INTERESTED IN GREENLAND
The possible use of military force would have resulted in an unprecedented situation for the NATO alliance because both the U.S. and Denmark are members. One of the bedrock principles of the alliance is found in Article 5 of their charter, which states that every ally would view an attack on one of them as an attack on all of them.
Trump has long accused NATO of not doing enough to defend itself and of depending too heavily on the United States, but the one time Article 5 has ever been invoked was on behalf of the U.S. in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.
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