President Donald Trump dramatically escalated a transatlantic diplomatic crisis on Monday by explicitly linking his controversial pursuit of Greenland to being denied the Nobel Peace Prize, while threatening punitive tariffs against eight European NATO allies unless Denmark surrenders the Arctic territory to American control.
In an extraordinary message sent to Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre that Trump requested be shared with NATO allies, the US President wrote that since his country “decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize,” he no longer feels “an obligation to think purely of Peace” and can now prioritize what is “good and proper for the United States of America.”
Trump announced Saturday that the United States would impose a 10 percent tariff on goods from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland starting February 1, escalating to 25 percent by June 1 unless an agreement is reached for US control of Greenland. The threatened levies have sparked emergency diplomatic meetings across Europe, with EU ambassadors convening crisis sessions in Brussels.
Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark with approximately 57,000 residents, has made abundantly clear through massive protests that it opposes American annexation. An estimated quarter of Nuuk’s population marched past the US Consulate on Saturday chanting “Greenland is not for sale” and carrying their national flag in defiance of Trump’s demands.
Business Minister Naaja Nathanielsen told CNBC on Tuesday that Greenlanders are “bewildered,” “worried,” and “afraid” at finding themselves treated “like a product or a property.” She emphasized that while Greenland values its alliance with the United States and seeks continued collaboration, threats of occupation are “absolutely devastating” and unacceptable.
The eight NATO allies issued a rare joint statement condemning Trump’s tariff threats as undermining “transatlantic relations” and risking “a dangerous downward spiral.” Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen warned that any US military action against Greenland would effectively end NATO, while several European defense ministers pledged to invoke Article 5 of the NATO treaty to defend Denmark if necessary.
Trump’s justification for seeking Greenland centers on strategic Arctic security concerns, claiming Russia or China would occupy the territory if America does not act first. He stated he would prefer making “a deal the easy way” but warned that if negotiations fail, the United States would pursue the territory “the hard way,” refusing to rule out military force when questioned by reporters.
European leaders including French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer have scrambled to de-escalate tensions ahead of Trump’s scheduled appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos this week. Meanwhile, bipartisan US senators including Democrat Tim Kaine and Republican Rand Paul are exploring legislative options to constrain Trump’s unilateral actions regarding Greenland, including potential war powers resolutions.
In a phone interview with NBC News on Monday, Trump incorrectly claimed that “Norway totally controls” the Nobel Peace Prize, despite the award being decided by an independent Norwegian Nobel Committee. The most recent Peace Prize was awarded to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado for her work in 2024, before Trump’s second term commenced.
