Scott Bessent Urges EU Leaders to 'Take a Deep Breath' Over Greenland & Tariff Threats

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Tuesday said America’s relations with Europe remain strong and urged trading partners to “take a deep breath” and let tensions driven by the Trump administration’s new tariff threats over Greenland “play out.” “I think our relations have never been closer,” he said, speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland. On Saturday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a 10% import tax starting in February on goods from eight European nations that have rallied around Denmark in the wake of his stepped-up calls for the United States to take over the semi-autonomous Danish territory of Greenland. Trump links Greenland threat to Nobel snub, says he no longer thinks ‘purely of Peace’ Trump has insisted the U.S. needs the territory for security reasons against possible threats from China and Russia. U.S. President Donald Trump has told Norway's prime minister in a letter that he no longer feels obligated 'to think purely of Peace' because he had not been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, and he repeated his demand for control of Greenland. Reuters Trump’s threats spark diplomatic flurry across Europe The American leader’s threats have sparked outrage and a flurry of diplomatic activity across Europe, as leaders consider possible countermeasures, including retaliatory tariffs and the first-ever use of the European Union’s anti-coercion instrument. What are the EU’s options to counter U.S. on Greenland? The EU has three major economic tools it could use to pressure Washington: new tariffs, suspension of the U.S.-EU trade deal, and the “trade bazooka” – the unofficial term for the bloc’s Anti-Coercion Instrument, which could sanction individuals or institutions found to be putting undue pressure on the EU. Earlier Tuesday, Trump posted on social media that he had spoken with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. He said “I agreed to a meeting of the various parties in Davos, Switzerland,” which is hosting the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting this week. France’s Macron suggests G7 meeting in Paris this week Trump also posted a text message from Emmanuel Macron in which the French president suggested a meeting of members of the Group of Seven industrialized democracies in Paris after the Davos gathering. Later, however, Trump posted some provocatively doctored images. One showed him planting the U.S. flag next to a sign reading “Greenland, U.S. Territory, Est. 2026.” The other showed Trump in the Oval Office next to a map that showed Greenland and Canada covered with the U.S. Stars and Stripes. Canada weighs plans to send soldiers to Greenland as show of NATO solidarity In a sign of how tensions have increased in recent days, thousands of Greenlanders marched over the weekend in protest of any effort to take over their island. Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said in a Facebook post on Monday that the tariff threats would not change their stance. “We will not be pressured,” he wrote. In his latest threat of tariffs, Trump indicated that the import taxes would be retaliation for last week’s deployment of symbolic numbers of troops from European countries to Greenland–though he also suggested that he was using the tariffs as leverage to negotiate with Denmark. Danish minister calls for a stronger Europe in the face of Trump’s threats Denmark’s minister for European affairs called Trump’s tariff threats “deeply unfair.” He said that Europe needs to become even stronger and more independent, while stressing there is “no interest in escalating a trade war.” Opinion: Mad King Trump would break the world to gain Greenland “You just have to note that we are on the edge of a new world order, where having power has unfortunately become crucial, and we see a United States with an enormous condescending rhetoric towards Europe,” Marie Bjerre told Danish public broadcaster DK on Tuesday. European markets open sharply lower European markets opened sharply lower on Tuesday, and U.S. futures fell further as tensions rose over Greenland. Benchmarks in Germany, France and Britain fell about 1%. The future for the S&P 500 lost 1.5% and the Dow future was down 1.4%. With U.S. trading closed Monday for a holiday, financial markets had a relatively muted response to Trump’s threat to put a 10% extra tariff on exports from eight European countries that have opposed his push to exert control over Greenland. Jonas Golterman of Capital Economics described the situation as a lose-lose one for both the U.S. and the targets of Trump’s anger. He said, “It certainly feels like the kind of situation that could get worse before it gets better.”