Davos The end of globalization
DAVOS, Switzerland — President Donald Trump said Wednesday he is dropping his threat to slap new tariffs on European nations in a fresh sign that he is prepared to reach a peaceful settlement to a tense standoff over the future of Greenland.
Trump announced on social media that after a private meeting with NATO's secretary general in Davos, Switzerland, he agreed to the "framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic region."
Trump gave no details, nor did he say he was abandoning his effort to wrest control of Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark. Earlier Wednesday, Trump gave a speech at the World Economic Forum in which he said that the U.S. needs to absorb Greenland for global security reasons and that European countries need to meet the demand.
Senior administration officials, including Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff, will lead the negotiations over Greenland's fate and report back to him, Trump wrote.
Financial markets spiked at the news that Trump was ditching the 10% tariffs he said he would impose on eight European countries — part of a pressure campaign to gain possession of Greenland.
For now, Trump seems intent on a negotiated resolution to the Greenland dispute. In his speech, he said he won’t use military force to acquire Greenland, though he left no doubt that he still wants the U.S. to play a dominant role in Greenland's future.