WTO Chief Urges De-escalation Amid Greenland Trade Tensions

World Trade Organization (WTO) Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala warned on Tuesday that all sides need to de-escalate the Greenland situation, where US President Donald Trump is demanding that the US take ownership, to avoid an all-out trade war. Okonjo-Iweala spoke at the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where Reuters reported she said, “We need to find a way to ensure it doesn't result in a trade war because a trade war will hurt not only those engaged in it but have negative spillovers for others.” "I think what we are seeing and hearing in Davos is kind of a little bit of a dialing down," she told journalists at Davos. Her comments come as Trump continues to threaten tariffs against the EU if Greenland’s ownership is not transferred to the United States. “Starting on February 1st, 2026, all of the above-mentioned countries (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland) will be charged a 10% tariff on any and all goods sent to the United States of America,” he posted on Truth Social. “On June 1st, 2026, the Tariff will be increased to 25%,” Trump warned. According to the US president, the country wishes to acquire Greenland for security reasons, as it is “key to implement the ‘Golden Dome’ project.” Rare-earth elements, mining industry potential in Greenland A Reuters report noted that Trump’s Greenland project might also be linked to current economic developments, particularly the rare-earth elements industry. A 2023 survey by the European Commission showed that 25 of 34 minerals deemed "critical raw materials" were found there, Reuters reported. The report explained that Greenland has three deposits of rare-earth elements, which are key to permanent magnets used in electric vehicles and wind turbines, and are located in the southern province of Gardar. According to another report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Kvanefjeld, in southern Greenland, has the third-largest known land deposit of rare-earth elements, but environmental concerns over the region's uranium deposit currently obstruct any mining project. The CSIS report also points out that Greenland’s infrastructure is not prepared to become a rare-earth elements mining hub, with only 93 miles of road across the entire island, a severe shortage of maritime port capacity, and insufficient electricity generation to support the projects. Any mining project would reportedly require multibillion-dollar investments in Greenland's infrastructure. Alan Beattie, senior trade writer for the Financial Times, explained that mining is currently a small industry in Greenland, with its deposits hard to access and expensive to extract. Reuters reported that companies interested in extracting these resources are Critical Metals Corp, which bought the Tanbreez deposit, Energy Transition Minerals, whose Kuannersuit project is stalled amid legal disputes, and Neo Performance Materials. Additionally, Reuters reported on Thursday that Critical Metals Corp may build a refinery with a Saudi Arabian partner to process rare earths from its planned Tanbreez mine in Greenland, with the refined material to be supplied to the US defense sector.