Trump’s New 4-Word Warning to Greenland: “Now It Is Time” Tariffs Until It Becomes American

Despite clear signs that most Greenlanders want nothing to do with becoming part of the United States — a poll from last year showed a huge 85% opposition — Trump seems more determined than ever to bring the Arctic island under American control. He’s been vocal about it for a while now, but things really heated up with his latest post on Truth Social.

In that Monday morning message, he went after Denmark, saying they’ve failed to deal with what he calls the “Russian threat” hanging over Greenland. His exact words? “Unfortunately, Denmark has been unable to do anything about it. Now it is time, and it will be done!!!”

He pointed out that NATO has apparently been pressing Denmark for 20 years to push back against Russian influence in the area, but according to Trump, nothing’s changed — so the U.S. might have to step in and handle it themselves.

This came right after he dropped another bombshell the day before: slapping a 10% tariff on imports from several European countries — Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, and Finland. He tied those tariffs directly to the Greenland issue, saying they’ll stay in place “until Greenland becomes American.” They kick in starting February 1.

Europe didn’t take that lying down. EU ambassadors rushed into emergency talks on Sunday, and EU Council President Antonio Costa came out swinging, calling the tariffs a direct hit on transatlantic ties and something that clashes with existing EU-U.S. trade deals. He made it clear: the EU is prepared to push back against any kind of pressure or coercion. They’ve even got a special summit of EU leaders lined up for Thursday to figure out next steps on this whole Greenland mess.

Meanwhile, the countries hit with the tariffs — Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, and Finland — put out a joint statement insisting that the troops they’ve sent to Greenland as part of Operation Arctic Endurance aren’t a threat to anyone. They’re just there to bolster security in the region.

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen kept things diplomatic but firm, saying talks are ongoing and Denmark isn’t giving up its position. “We will stay on track — unless U.S. decides differently,” he added. Norway’s Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide was even blunter: threats like these tariffs are simply unacceptable between close allies.

Back home, not everyone’s on board with Trump’s approach. Republican Rep. Michael McCaul, who used to chair the House Foreign Affairs and Homeland Security committees, pushed back hard during an appearance on This Week. He pointed out that the U.S. already has full military access to Greenland for defense purposes. Buying it? Maybe that’s one thing to discuss. But any kind of military takeover? He warned that would flip NATO’s Article 5 upside down, basically putting the U.S. at odds with its own allies — and could end up destroying the alliance as we know it.

It’s a wild escalation in what’s already been a rocky start to Trump’s second term, and with Europe digging in and Greenlanders protesting loudly, this standoff doesn’t look like it’s cooling off anytime soon.