The dispute over the Danish Arctic island of Greenland has reached a new level of escalation. US President Donald Trump announced on Saturday that starting February 1st, additional tariffs of 10 percent will be imposed on all goods imported from Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, and Finland. If an agreement for a complete sale of Greenland to the USA is not reached by June 1st, an increase of the tariff rates to 25 percent is planned.
Trump justified this step with the national security of the United States and the protection against the geopolitical interests of Russia and China in the Arctic. He also criticized the deployment of European soldiers to the island, which he described as a 'dangerous game'. The affected states had previously sent troops to the island at Denmark's request to assess the security situation.
In Europe, the threats were met with sharp rejection. The German federal government stated that it is in close coordination with its European partners to decide on suitable reactions. Representatives of the EU Commission and French government bodies described the announced measures as unacceptable and hinted at possible retaliatory tariffs. In Germany, political consequences are also being discussed; for instance, some members of parliament brought up a boycott of the 2026 Football World Cup as a 'last resort' should the USA stick to its 'plans for annexation'.
