Trump tariff menace over Greenland ‘unacceptable’, European leaders say

[ad_1] Henri Astier and

Bernd Debusmann Jr, White Home correspondent

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/2519/live/b7c7f9e0-f3e2-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/2519/live/b7c7f9e0-f3e2-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/2519/live/b7c7f9e0-f3e2-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/2519/live/b7c7f9e0-f3e2-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/2519/live/b7c7f9e0-f3e2-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/2519/live/b7c7f9e0-f3e2-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/2519/live/b7c7f9e0-f3e2-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/2519/live/b7c7f9e0-f3e2-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp" loading="eager" alt="Reuters A woman waves a Greenlandic flag as people attend a protest against President Donald Trump's demand that the Arctic island be ceded to the US, in Nuuk, the capital of Greenland" class="sc-5340b511-0 hLdNfA"/> Reuters Protesters in Greenland rallied on Saturday in opposition to any US transfer purchase the territory

A menace by President Donald Trump to impose contemporary tariffs on eight allies against his proposed takeover of Greenland has drawn condemnation from European leaders.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer stated the transfer was "utterly flawed" whereas French President Emmanuel Macron referred to as it "unacceptable". Swedish PM Ulf Kristersson stated: "We cannot let ourselves be blackmailed."

The feedback got here after Trump introduced a ten% tariff on items from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands and Finland would come into drive on 1 February - and will later rise to 25% - and would final till a deal was reached.

Mr Trump insists the autonomous Danish territory is crucial for US safety and has not dominated out taking it by drive.

In the meantime, hundreds of individuals took to the streets in Greenland and Denmark on Saturday in protest on the proposed US takeover.

Greenland is sparsely populated however resource-rich and its location between North America and the Arctic makes it properly positioned for early warning programs within the occasion of missile assaults and for monitoring vessels within the area.

Trump has beforehand stated Washington would get the territory "the simple method" or "the onerous method".

Greenland: 'Diplomatic channels are the way in which to go' US speaker tells BBC earlier than tariff announcement

European international locations have rallied to Denmark's help. They've argued that the safety of the Arctic area ought to be a joint Nato accountability.

France, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Netherlands and the UK have dispatched a small variety of troops to Greenland in a so-called reconnaissance mission.

Asserting the brand new tariffs in a publish on his Reality Social platform on Saturday, Trump stated these international locations have been taking part in "a really harmful sport". At stake, he stated, was the "Security, Safety, and Survival of our Planet".

He stated the proposed 10% levy to be launched subsequent month on items exported to the US would rise to 25% in June and stay "payable till such time as a Deal is reached for the Full and Whole buy of Greenland".

In his response, Starmer stated: "Making use of tariffs on allies for pursuing the collective safety of Nato allies is totally flawed. We'll after all be pursuing this instantly with the US administration."

France's Emmanuel Macron stated: "Tariff threats are unacceptable on this context... We is not going to be swayed by any intimidation."

Ulf Kristersson stated: "Sweden is at the moment having intensive discussions with different EU international locations, Norway and the UK to discover a joint response."

European Council President Antonio Costa acknowledged: "The European Union will all the time be very agency in defending worldwide legislation... which after all begins inside the territory of the member states of the European Union."

In the meantime, Denmark's overseas minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen stated the menace had "come as a shock".

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/a60c/live/badc5e70-f3e5-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/a60c/live/badc5e70-f3e5-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/a60c/live/badc5e70-f3e5-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/a60c/live/badc5e70-f3e5-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/a60c/live/badc5e70-f3e5-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/a60c/live/badc5e70-f3e5-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/a60c/live/badc5e70-f3e5-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/a60c/live/badc5e70-f3e5-11f0-808e-fddbe2ff1e6c.png.webp" loading="lazy" alt="Reuters Trump at his Oval Office desk " class="sc-5340b511-0 hLdNfA"/> Reuters Trump has lately escalated his drive to amass Greenland

Trump has usually mused that "tariff" is his favorite phrase, and he has made clear that he views it as one thing of a blunt instrument with which to persuade – or coerce – international locations around the globe to align their insurance policies with the specified outcomes of the White Home.

However his announcement represents a major escalation in his lately rekindled drive to amass Greenland, regardless of their opposition.

It's unclear what instantly prompted the tariffs announcement, which Trump first hinted at whereas talking to reporters on the White Home on Friday.

Whereas in current weeks he has repeatedly stated that a wide range of choices – together with the potential use of army drive – remained on the desk, the announcement comes simply days after US and Danish officers agreed to arrange a high-level working group to debate the way forward for the island.

In Washington's diplomatic and political circles, that announcement was seen by many as a "best-case" situation for Denmark and its European allies – one that will, on the very least, delay any resolution or additional escalation from the White Home.

As an alternative, the most recent tariffs have injected a newfound sense of urgency into the difficulty and strained relations with essential Nato allies and buying and selling companions.

<img sizes="(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw" srcset="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/240/cpsprodpb/89bf/live/dede9b80-f3e0-11f0-a231-2f656b2fd1a6.png.webp 240w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/320/cpsprodpb/89bf/live/dede9b80-f3e0-11f0-a231-2f656b2fd1a6.png.webp 320w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/89bf/live/dede9b80-f3e0-11f0-a231-2f656b2fd1a6.png.webp 480w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/640/cpsprodpb/89bf/live/dede9b80-f3e0-11f0-a231-2f656b2fd1a6.png.webp 640w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/800/cpsprodpb/89bf/live/dede9b80-f3e0-11f0-a231-2f656b2fd1a6.png.webp 800w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1024/cpsprodpb/89bf/live/dede9b80-f3e0-11f0-a231-2f656b2fd1a6.png.webp 1024w,https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/1536/cpsprodpb/89bf/live/dede9b80-f3e0-11f0-a231-2f656b2fd1a6.png.webp 1536w" src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/480/cpsprodpb/89bf/live/dede9b80-f3e0-11f0-a231-2f656b2fd1a6.png.webp" loading="lazy" alt="EPA Protesters waving Greenland's white and red flag in support of self-determination in Copenhagen, 17 January 2016" class="sc-5340b511-0 hLdNfA"/> EPA Protesters in Copenhagen waved Greenland's white and pink flag in help of self-determination

Opinion polls counsel 85% of Greenlanders oppose the territory becoming a member of the US.

Demonstrations in opposition to Trump's takeover plans have been held in Danish cities in addition to in Greenland's capital, Nuuk, on Saturday - earlier than the tariff announcement.

Within the Danish capital, Copenhagen, placards have been held up studying: "Palms Off Greenland" and "Greenland for Greenlanders".

"We demand respect for the Danish Realm and for Greenland's proper to self-determination," stated Camilla Siezing, heads of Inuit, an umbrella group of Greenlandic associations.

In Nuuk, Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen joined protesters holding indicators studying "Greenland is just not on the market" and "we form our future" as they headed for the US consulate.

The rallies coincide with a go to to Copenhagen by a delegation from the US Congress. Its chief, Democratic Senator Chris Coons, described Mr Trump's rhetoric as "not constructive".