Trump considers increasing tariffs amid US delegation meeting in Denmark

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (CN) — Greenland’s flag flew outside Denmark’s Parliament Friday as a delegation of 11 U.S. senators and representatives arrived in Copenhagen for two days of talks with Danish and Greenlandic officials and business leaders, following renewed discussion sparked by Donald Trump’s remarks about a U.S. takeover of the Arctic island.

The delegation includes Democratic senators Chris Coons, Dick Durbin, Peter Welch and Jeanne Shaheen, along with Republican senators Thom Tillis and Lisa Murkowski. House Democrats Steny Hoyer, Gregory Meeks, Madeleine Dean, Sara Jacobs and Sarah McBride also took part.

After a closed, hourlong meeting between Danish and Greenlandic officials at Parliament, several U.S. lawmakers spoke at a packed news conference.

“Ask the American people whether or not they think it is a good idea for the United States to acquire Greenland. The vast majority, some 75%, will say, we do not think that that is a good idea. This senator from Alaska does not think it is a good idea,” said Murkowski.

“Greenland needs to be viewed as our ally, not as an asset. And I think that is what you are hearing with this delegation,” she said.

One of two Greenlandic seats in the Danish Parliament, Aaja Chemnitz, highlighted positive discussions in the group about the human aspect of the situation.

“We also talked about the human dimension. The pressure that people are feeling back home in Greenland, and I think it was well received, and of course, they understand the concerns we have in Greenland. I want to thank my colleagues from Greenland, Denmark and the U.S. for being here,” said Chemnitz.

Coons made time for some quick remarks shortly after the news conference. He said a meeting with President Trump is probably off the table, but opportunities to meet with Secretary of State Marco Rubio might be a possibility.

“But the most important thing for this delegation as a whole is to bring back the messages from this meeting. To hear the anxiety and fear that this creates for families and children in Greenland,” said Coons.

Earlier Friday, before the press conference, Tillis shared his opinion that the U.S. should not prolong a conflict with its close NATO ally, Denmark, over plans to acquire Greenland.

“It's absurd because it's a sovereign territory in a sovereign country with historically unparalleled support for the United States. They were in Afghanistan and 43 people lost their lives,” said Tillis. “Russia, China, Iran. They’re the enemies.”

Friday’s Copenhagen visit could mark the start of a political “own goal” for Trump if his continued talk of acquiring Greenland fuels growing resistance to his policies in Congress, said Troels Bøggild, a lecturer at Aarhus University’s Institute of Political Science, in an email to Courthouse News.

“The meeting sends an important message to Trump, that there is internal resistance in the U.S. and within his own party against his approach towards Denmark and Greenland. Trump’s power lies in his ability to scare fellow Republicans from going against him,” said Bøggild.

“So far, it is not the most powerful congressmembers that have opposed him. Resistance from more and influential Republicans is needed, before Trump finds himself in serious trouble,” he said.

In a White House appearance following the Copenhagen visit, Trump raised the possibility of imposing tariffs on countries that refuse to support his pursuit of Greenland.

“I may put a tariff on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security,” said Trump, without laying out his thoughts any further.

“It only emphasizes the difficulty of the situation we find ourselves in,” said Troels Lund Poulsen, defense minister of Denmark, to broadcaster TV2 after hearing the news Friday night.

The visit came a day after White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed an upcoming working group would continue "technical talks on the acquisition of Greenland" through high-level diplomacy with the U.S., Greenland and Denmark.

Danish Foreign Affairs Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen rejected that premise on Danish television Thursday night.

"It's just not what we agreed on. I know what we agreed on," Rasmussen told Danish broadcaster DR. “I have sat in the room and looked directly into the eyes of the American vice president and secretary of state and agreed on these things.”

While “agreeing to disagree,” Rasmussen told reporters Wednesday that he and Greenland’s foreign minister, Vivian Motzfeldt, agreed to form a high-level working group with the United States to discuss the Arctic island’s security. The announcement followed an hourlong meeting in Washington with Vice President JD Vance and Rubio.

The diplomatic dispute has drawn in other allies. After Wednesday’s meeting, European leaders pledged to bolster the collective defense of the territory, with France, Germany and Sweden sending troops to Greenland for a Danish-led joint military exercise.

The deployment appears largely symbolic. While exact numbers were not disclosed, the force is reportedly small, with Germany contributing 13 personnel.

However, French President Emmanuel Macron also said he would be sending additional “land, air and maritime assets” to support the exercise, in addition to troops that are already on the ground. Speaking from a military base in the southern French city of Istres on Thursday, he reiterated the continent’s determination to protect Greenland and took a not-so-subtle jab at Trump.

"France and the Europeans must continue to be present wherever their interests are threatened — without escalation, but uncompromising when it comes to respect for territorial sovereignty," Macron said, referencing “a new colonialism that is at work among some.”

France also announced it will be opening a consulate on the territory in early February. 

The White House doesn’t seem deterred by Europe’s efforts to protect the territory.

"I don't think troops in Europe impact the president's decision-making process, nor does it impact his goal of the acquisition of Greenland at all," Leavitt said on Wednesday.

Greenland is a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, which retains control over the island’s security and foreign affairs. The Arctic territory lies along the shortest missile route between Russia and Washington, and melting ice is opening new commercial shipping lanes while exposing rare minerals critical to green technology and electric vehicles, drawing interest from China.

Trump has intensified talk of acquiring the world’s largest island and has not ruled out military intervention. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has previously warned that such a move “will be the end of NATO.”

Trump has continued to argue Greenland is vital to U.S. security, despite an existing agreement that already allows the United States to establish military bases on the island, provided Denmark is notified.

Courthouse News correspondent Lasse Sørensen is based in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Courthouse News reporter Lily Radziemski is based in Paris.

Follow @LasseSrensen13

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