President Donald Trump launched a fresh blitz of aggressive messages aimed at NATO allies over his determination to take control of Greenland, ratcheting up tensions with European leaders ahead of his appearance at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland this week.
The escalating argument over the Arctic island has threatened to reignite a trade war with Europe and upend the NATO alliance that has underpinned Western security for decades. Trump is due to arrive in the Swiss Alpine ski-resort town Wednesday for the meeting of global elites from the worlds of business, government and culture.
But ahead of that, in the early Tuesday morning hours, Trump unleashed a series of trolling Truth Social posts that took aim at French President Emmanuel Macron. In one of his posts, Trump shared a message sent to him from Macron that said, “I do not understand what you are doing on Greenland.” A French official confirmed the message’s authenticity to USA TODAY.
Trump also posted a doctored image that showed European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen sitting in the White House’s Oval Office next to a map showing Greenland and Canada as American territory. He posted a separate AI image that depicts him planting an American flag on Greenland alongside Vice President JD Vance and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Next to them is a sign reading: “US TERRITORY. EST 2026.”
The onslaught of messages came as European Union leaders discuss possible retaliatory tariffs on U.S. imports worth $108 billion after Trump announced tariffs on European allies who oppose his position on Greenland, which is an autonomous part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Trump has insisted he will “get” Greenland for the United States, by force if necessary.
Speaking from Davos on Tuesday, von der Leyen said Trump’s new tariff threats go against a trade deal the two sides hammered out last summer. “And when friends shake hands, it must mean something,” she said.
Trump over the weekend told the prime minister of Norway that his single-minded push to obtain Greenland was linked to his disappointment at not receiving the Nobel Peace Prize.
U.S. stocks closed sharply lower Tuesday, with the broad S&P 500 index posting its worst day in three months, as investors worried about Trump’s tariff threats in his efforts to take over Greenland.
The S&P 500 closed down 2.06%, or 143.15 points, at 6,796.86, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq shed 2.39%, or 561.065 points, to 22,954.322. The blue-chip Dow ended down 176%, or 870.74 points, at 48,488.59.
Chris Turner, global head of markets at Dutch bank ING, said “it is probably a little too early to be dusting off the ‘Sell America’ theme, where Washington’s pursuit of Greenland, like the near-50% Liberation Day tariffs last April, is seen as a spectacular own-goal.”
-Medora Lee
Trump on Tuesday previewed his upcoming speech at Davos by saying he would offer Europeans advice about changing their energy and immigration policies, based on the first year of his second term.
While speaking to reports at the White House press breifing, Trump spent more than an hour reocunting his accomplishments during the first year of his second term, including how he closed the border and is deporting immigrants without legal documentation to remain in the country.
He also promoted his energy policy to develop more fossil fuels and to abandon the Paris climate accord, which sought to reduce carbon emissions.
“A lot of them could use some of the advice as to what we did,” the president said. “They’re going to destroy themselves with what they’re doing, with the windmills and all the nonsense. They need energy help badly or they’re going to be in big trouble and they need immigration help badly.”
-Bart Jansen
Besides his plan to acquire Greenland, Trump entered office demanding a return to reclaim control of the Panama Canal because of its strategic importance in Central America.
The United States oversaw construction of the canal, which opened in 1914 to ease shipping traffic between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. But former President Jimmy Carter returned the canal to Panama, a decision Trump has criticized as a mistake.
Asked whether he still wanted the canal back, Trump declined to say.
“I don’t want to tell you that,” Trump said. “Sort of.”
-Bart Jansen
Trump was asked whether he worried about breaking up the North Atlantic Treaty Organization over his proposal to acquire Greenland, but he said “something” will be worked out.
“I think something is going to happen that is going to be very good for everybody,” Trump said. “I think we will work something out where NATO will be very happy.”
Trump said NATO has been good. He argued that he made it stronger by insisting that member countries spend 5% of their gross domestic product on defense.
“I’ve made it so much better and so much stronger,” Trump said.
Told that Greenland residents don’t want to join the United States, Trump said he could persuade them.
“When I speak to them, I’m sure they’ll be thrilled,” Trump said.
-Bart Jansen
Trump said if the Supreme Court overturns the emergency tariffs he threatened to impose on European countries to obtain Greenland, he could apply pressure in other ways.
The high court could rule any time until the end of June on whether Trump is authorized to impose tariffs under the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
But administration officials have said he could impose tariffs under other statutes or otherwise regulate imports.
“I’ll have to use something else,” Trump said, suggesting he could restrict imports under licenses. “We have other alternatives. What we have now is the best, the strongest, the fastest, the least complicated.”
-Bart Jansen
Trump remained cagey Tuesday afternoon about his plans for Greenland.
Asked at a White House news conference how far he was willing to go to acquire the Arctic island, he dodged.
“You’ll find out,” Trump said.
-Bart Jansen
Trump told reporters during an appearance at the White House podium that he should have received the Nobel Peace Prize for the eight conflicts he says he settled, and hit the country of Norway over the perceived snub.
“Should have gotten the Nobel Prize for each war,” Trump said.
The president again said that the country of Norway determines who receives the award that’s given out by the Nobel Committee, whose members are appointed by the Norwegian Parliament.
“It’s in Norway. Norway controls the shots. They’ll say, ‘We have nothing to do with it.’ It’s a joke. They’ve lost such prestige,” the president said.
Trump linked the peace prize to the dispute with Nordic nations over Greenland’s future in a weekend text to Norway’s prime minister.
-Francesca Chambers
U.S. military aircraft are arriving at Pituffik Space Base—the only U.S. military base in Greenland. But their arrival is part of “long-planned” military activities, according to a Monday announcement from North American Aerospace Defense Command.
The operation was “coordinated” with Denmark, which currently owns Greenland, and the island’s government was “also informed of planned activities,” according to the statement.
Meanwhile, tiny numbers of troops from Germany, France, Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom have also touched down on the island in recent days as part of “Operation Arctic Endurance,” joint exercises led by Denmark. France sent the most troops of any country – just 15 people.
It was not immediately clear how long the deployments by European troops would last. The 13 military personnel Germany sent to Greenland were only due to be in the territory for two days, from Jan. 15-17.
Denmark’s Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen has said the point of the deployments is to explore the idea of having a European military presence on the island “in rotation,” with Denmark’s allies regularly taking part in exercises and training activities. The U.K. and the Netherlands each sent a single security officer each to Greenland.
-Cybele Mayes-Osterman and Kim Hjelmgaard
Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, laid out a plan for a Europe that is no longer dependent on Washington’s whims, touting a major free trade deal in South America and initiatives in AI and military production.
One day before Trump is due to speak to the world’s political and business glitterati at Davos, von der Leyen suggested Europe will never again look to the U.S. as the first among equals, noting in a speech that “nostalgia will not bring back the old order. And playing for time – and hoping for things to revert soon – will not fix the structural dependencies we have” on the U.S.
“So my point is: If this change is permanent, then Europe must change permanently too,” she said. “It is time to seize this opportunity and build a new independent Europe.”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom called foreign leaders “pathetic” for how they have dealt diplomatically with Trump and urged a new course.
“The Europeans should decide for themselves what to do. But one thing they can’t do is what they’ve been doing,” Newsome told reporters at the Davos conference in Switzerland. “This guy’s been playing folks for fools and it’s embarrassing.”
Newsome specifically criticized incidents where South Korean leaders gave Trump the gift of a crown and Venezuela’s opposition leader presented him with her Nobel Peace Prize medal.
“I should have brought a bunch of knee pads for all the world leaders,” said Newsom, a Democrat who is a potential presidential candidate in 2028. “I hope people understand how pathetic they look on the world stage.”
–Bart Jansen
Senior figures in the U.S. Catholic Church issued a searing rebuke of American foreign policy under the Trump administration, saying the country’s “moral role in confronting evil around the world” is in question.
Three archbishops said in a rare joint statement on Monday that military action must only be used as a last resort and renounced using war as an “instrument for narrow national interests.”
Though Cardinals Blase J. Cupich of Chicago, Robert McElroy of Washington, D.C., and Joseph W. Tobin of Newark, New Jersey, did not refer to Trump by name, they pointed to “recent events” in Venezuela, Ukraine and Greenland.
“Our nation’s debate on the moral foundation for American policy is beset by polarization, partisanship, and narrow economic and social interests,” the statement said. “Pope Leo has given us the prism through which to raise it to a much higher level. We will preach, teach, and advocate in the coming months to make that higher level possible.”
-Kathryn Palmer
As the Trump administration’s pivot to affordability gets overshadowed by the brawl over Greenland, Vice President JD Vance is heading to Ohio to try and keep the focus on the economy.
Vance will deliver a speech at an industrial shipping facility in Toledo “highlighting the Trump Administration’s commitment to lower prices, bigger paychecks, and creating more good-paying jobs in Ohio and across the Midwest,” according to a press release.
Trump has emphasized cost-of-living concerns in recent remarks and the issue was expected to be a big focus for the president this year as lingering concerns about the economy threaten the GOP’s majority in Congress. But foreign policy has taken precedence as Trump clashes with European leaders over Greenland.
-Zac Anderson
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters Tuesday that Trump seeks to bolster national security by controlling Greenland rather than because of any upset over his lack of winning a Nobel Peace Prize.
“I think it’s a complete canard that the president would be doing this because of the Nobel prize,” Bessent told reporters at the Davos conference in Switzerland. “The president is looking at Greenland as a strategic assent for the United States. We are not going to outsource our hemispheric security to anyone else.”
However, in a Sunday text message to Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, Trump made the connection plain, writing: “Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace, although it will always be predominant, but can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America. Denmark cannot protect that land from Russia or China, and why do they have a ‘right of ownership’ anyway?”
Asked about potential European retaliation to Trump’s threatened tariffs, Bessent said, “I think it would be very unwise.”
−Bart Jansen
In a Facebook post, Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said “Greenland is a democratic society with the right to make its own decisions. The latest statements from the U.S., including threats of tariffs, do not change that line. We will not let ourselves be pressured. We stand firm on dialogue, on respect and on international law.”
In a news conference on Monday, Nielsen said Trump’s social media posts were not respectful.
Trump has been talking about wresting sovereignty over Greenland for months. His latest wave of comments follow a text message he sent to Norway’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre in which he linked his drive to take control of Greenland to his failure to win the Nobel Peace Prize, saying he no longer thought “purely of Peace.”
In Florida, after he attended the Indiana-Miami national college football championship, Trump said there was “no going back on Greenland,” adding, “Let’s put it this way: it’s going to be an interesting Davos.”
In his barrage of social media posts, Trump also blasted what he characterized as Britain’s “great stupidity” over its decision last year to cede the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean to the nation of Mauritius − which Trump linked to the Greenland issue
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer agreed to hand over the Chagos Islands to Mauritius in May while retaining control of a strategic joint U.K.-U.S. military base on Diego Garcia, the largest island of the Chagos Archipelago. At the time, U.S. Secretary of State Marc Rubio said Trump had “expressed his support for this monumental achievement.”
It’s not clear why Trump has appeared to reverse that position. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In his Truth Social post, Trump said there’s “no doubt China and Russia have noticed this act of total weakness.” Starmer’s office said in a new statement that Britain’s decision to hand sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius was the result of legal actions. Britain negotiated a 99-year lease on the military base.
Speaking in Davos, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he was confident European governments won’t “escalate” tensions with the U.S. over its aim to buy Greenland. “This will work out in a manner that ends up in a very good place for all,” Bessent told reporters on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum meeting.
Von der Leyen, the EU chief, also weighed in from Davos, saying that Trump’s Greenland threats including the tariffs were a “mistake” and that Europe’s response would be “unflinching, united and proportional.”
She said the EU and U.S. agreed to a trade deal in July last year.
“A deal is a deal,” she said.
“And when friends shake hands, it must mean something.”