Denmark\u2019s prime minister has called for \u201cconstructive\u201d talks over Greenland that respect its territorial integrity, as Europeans gave a wary welcome to Donald Trump\u2019s decision to drop tariff threats against countries opposing his plans to seize the island.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can negotiate all political aspects \u2013 security, investment, the economy \u2013 but we cannot negotiate our sovereignty,\u201d Mette Frederiksen said on Thursday, after the US president suggested a deal was in sight to end the dispute over the territory.<\/p>\n
Trump said after meeting Nato\u2019s secretary general, Mark Rutte, that the \u201cframework of a future deal\u201d had been found to settle the issue after weeks of escalating tensions that risked the biggest breakdown in transatlantic relations in decades.<\/p>\n
Frederiksen said she had been informed that the talks between Trump and Rutte in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday had not involved compromising the sovereignty of Denmark or Greenland<\/a>, a largely self-governing territory of the Danish kingdom.<\/p>\n \u201cDenmark wishes to continue a constructive dialogue with its allies on ways to strengthen security in the Arctic, including the US Golden Dome [missile-defence system], provided this is done with respect for our territorial integrity,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Rutte told an audience in Davos on Thursday that he had a \u201cvery good discussion\u201d with Trump on how Nato allies could work collectively to ensure Arctic security, including not just Greenland but the seven alliance nations with land in the Arctic.<\/p>\n \u201cOne workstream coming out of yesterday \u2026 is to make sure when it comes to Greenland, particularly, that we ensure that the Chinese and the Russians will not gain access to the Greenland economy [or] militarily to Greenland,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Trump on Wednesday abruptly backed away from his threat to use tariffs as leverage to seize Greenland and also ruled out the use of force, stepping back from weeks of aggressive rhetoric that shook the Nato alliance and risked a new trade war with Europe<\/a>.<\/p>\n At the weekend he threatened to impose a 10% tariff<\/a> on imports from Denmark, France, Germany, Sweden, the UK, the Netherlands and Finland unless they dropped their objections to his Greenland plans, prompting EU leaders to consider retaliation.<\/p>\n Trump has repeatedly said the US needs to take control of the territory for \u201cnational security\u201d, despite the US already having a military base on the island and a bilateral agreement with Denmark allowing it to significantly expand its presence there.<\/p>\n While details of the proposed agreement remain scant, Trump said it was \u201ca deal that everybody\u2019s very happy with. It\u2019s the ultimate long-term deal. It puts everybody in a really good position, especially as it pertains to security and to minerals.\u201d<\/p>\n EU leaders were due to gather in Brussels later on Thursday for an emergency meeting to discuss how to handle the unpredictable US president amid a lingering sense that transatlantic ties had been irreparably damaged by his grab for the Arctic island.<\/p>\n European officials welcomed news of a deal, while expressing caution. Italy\u2019s prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, claimed a victory of sorts, saying<\/a> that Italy had \u201calways maintained it is essential to continue fostering dialogue\u201d between allies.<\/p>\n The Dutch prime minister, Dick Schoof, said it was<\/a> \u201cpositive we are now on the path to de-escalation\u201d, but added that the US, Canada and Europe must now \u201ccontinue to work together within Nato to strengthen security in the Arctic region\u201d.<\/p>\n The German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, welcomed Trump\u2019s shift in rhetoric. \u201cDespite all the frustration and anger of recent months, let us not be too quick to write off the transatlantic partnership,\u201d Merz said in a speech at Davos.<\/p>\n \u201cWe Europeans, we Germans, know how precious the trust is on which Nato rests. In an age of great powers, the United States, too, will depend on this trust. It is their \u2013 and our \u2013 decisive competitive advantage.\u201d<\/p>\n France\u2019s finance minister, Roland Lescure, said the announcement was \u201ca first positive sign that things are moving in the right direction. The magic word for the last 48 hours has been de-escalation. Right now, we\u2019re de-escalating.\u201d<\/p>\n Sweden\u2019s foreign affairs minister, Maria Stenergard, suggested resistance from Denmark\u2019s allies had \u201chad an effect\u201d. European leaders had lined up to criticise what the French president, Emmanuel Macron, called Trump\u2019s \u201cnew colonialism\u201d<\/a>.<\/p>\n The bloc also floated retaliatory economic action, including tariffs on \u20ac93bn (\u00a380bn) of US imports and the bloc\u2019s \u201cbig bazooka\u201d \u2013 its \u201canti-coercion instrument\u201d \u2013 which would limit US access to European markets including investment and digital services.<\/p>\n Teresa Ribera, a European Commission executive vice-president, said the EU needed to speak out against Trump. \u201cSilence is too ambiguous, too dangerous,\u201d she said in an interview with La Vanguardia<\/a>. \u201cIf Europe remains silent in the face of Trump, it fuels fear.\u201d<\/p>\n A European diplomat agreed that a strong EU reaction had influenced Trump. \u201cEU firmness and unity have contributed to get him to change his position,\u201d they said. \u201cObviously also internal political pressure in the US, and market reaction.\u201d<\/p>\n However, Germany\u2019s vice-chancellor, Lars Klingbeil, said Europe \u201cshould wait and see what substantive agreements are reached. No matter what solution is now found, everyone must understand that we cannot sit back, relax and be satisfied.\u201d<\/p>\n