Trump Backs Off Europe Tariffs After Reaching Purported Greenland 'Framework'
"Americans are tired of Trump’s circus of chaos," said Sen. Ed Markey.
President Donald Trump on Wednesday backed off his threat to levy new tariffs on European nations who were opposed to his efforts to seize control of Greenland after progress on a potential deal with NATO.
In a Truth Social post, Trump said that he and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte had worked out a "framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic Region."
"This solution, if consummated, will be a great one for the United States of America, and all NATO Nations," Trump continued. "Based upon this understanding, I will not be imposing the Tariffs that were scheduled to go into effect on February 1."
Hours earlier, Trump had once again demanded during a speech at the World Economic Forum that Denmark cede control of its self-governing territory to the US.
"We need Greenland for strategic national security and international security,” the president claimed. “This enormous, unsecured island is actually part of North America on the northern frontier of the Western Hemisphere. That’s our territory. It is therefore a core national security interest of the United States of America.”
Denmark and other European nations, however, have said that letting the US take over Greenland is nonnegotiable, and there is no indication that they have shown any willingness to give in to Trump's demands.
NATO spokesperson Allison Hart told NBC News that the "framework" referenced by Trump in his post "will focus on ensuring Arctic security through the collective efforts of allies, especially the seven Arctic allies," which is a far cry from letting the US annex the Danish territory.
After Trump's announcement, some Democratic lawmakers blasted him for pointlessly angering and antagonizing US allies.
"We don't yet know what exactly is in this 'framework,' but I am willing to bet that anything that the Danes/Greenlanders would be willing to agree to in this, they would have been willing to agree to before all of these threats," wrote Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.). "This isn't the Art of the Deal. It's the art of pissing off everyone for no purpose."
Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) also declared himself unimpressed with the president's announcement.
"Once again, Trump creates an international crisis and then rides in on his hobbyhorse to 'fix' it," Markey wrote in a social media post. "Americans are tired of Trump’s circus of chaos."
