US President Donald Trump is considering tariffs on countries that do not support his plans for Greenland.
He says this in an aside while talking about how he has used tariffs as a means to get countries to change course, at a roundtable meeting at the White House.
During the meeting, which is about health, Trump talks about, among other things, the prices of medicine.
- I might put a tariff on countries if they don't go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security, he says.
Trump does not elaborate on what he means by tariffs.
Is it legal?
According to Peter Bay Kirkegaard, senior chief consultant at the Confederation of Danish Industry, Trump could impose special tariffs on countries that do not support his plans for Greenland, "if he really wants to."
The question, however, according to Kirkegaard, is whether it is legal.
- This is something you will only find out if it is brought before a court, says the senior chief consultant.
- Of course, you have to keep a close eye on what Trump says. But you have to pay attention to what he does first and foremost. The question is whether he does anything about this, it says.
Will condition trade agreement with the US
But it is not only Trump who can threaten drastic solutions. According to the media outlet Bloomberg, certain parties in the European Parliament are considering making the final approval of the trade agreement between the EU and the US conditional on Trump giving up control over Greenland. This is reported by TV2.
"It is clear that the national sovereignty of any country must be respected by all parties to the trade agreement," said Bernd Lange, the long-time German chairman of the European Parliament's trade committee, who is helping to lead the negotiations, in an interview with Bloomberg.
