Trump Withdraws Tariff Threat, Greenland Enters New Phase
US President Donald Trump said he was postponing planned tariffs on goods from European countries that oppose his Greenland ambitions. The reason: Trump claimed there was already a "framework for a future agreement" that he said would cover Greenland and the wider Arctic region.
He made the statement via a social media post on Wednesday (January 21st), and it was immediately seen as a sharp change in tone. Previously, Trump had repeatedly pressured Europe with tariff threats as a bargaining chip. This "tariff hold" move came after he met with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland.
However, Trump did not elaborate on the content and scope of the "framework" he was referring to. The situation is also not simple: Denmark reiterated on the same day that it rejects any discussion that would lead to the handover of Greenland—an autonomous territory under the Kingdom of Denmark—to the US.
In his post, Trump wrote that the framework would be a "good solution" for the US and NATO countries. Because of this “understanding,” he stated that the tariffs originally scheduled to begin February 1 would not be implemented.
The market reaction was immediate. US stocks rose after news of the tariff delay emerged, US Treasury bonds rallied, and the dollar strengthened intraday. The market took this as a signal that trade tensions could ease—at least temporarily.
Trump told reporters that details of the deal would be announced soon, but he declined to definitively answer whether the framework meant the US would own Greenland. He simply called it a “long-term deal” and said it would be in effect “indefinitely.” In another interview, he admitted he had not yet spoken directly with Danish officials about the concept but assumed NATO had already outlined it. He also mentioned that the US would be “involved” in Greenland’s mineral affairs, without providing details.
Trump added that future discussions would also involve the Golden Dome missile defense system, which he said was one of the reasons Greenland was considered strategically important. He named JD Vance, Marco Rubio, and special envoy Steve Witkoff as part of the team handling the negotiations, along with others.
Despite the tariff hold, the Greenland saga is not truly over. The day before, markets had wavered as Trump's pressure intensified. The European Parliament was even reported to have frozen the ratification process for the EU-US trade agreement in response to the escalating tariff threats. And in his speech at Davos, although Trump rejected the military option, he still made a statement with a tone of pressure: Europe "can say yes" and be appreciated, or say no and "will be remembered."
The bottom line: Trump de-escalated today, but because the details of the "framework" remain vague and Denmark's position remains firm, markets continue to view this as a temporary ceasefire—not the end of the conflict.
Source: Newsmaker.id
