Trump backs off from tariff threat over Greenland, says he has "framework of a future deal"

Washington — President Trump said he will not be imposing tariffs against European countries over their objections to his efforts to acquire Greenland, revealing Wednesday that he and the secretary-general of NATO reached "the framework of a future deal" regarding the island.

"This solution, if consummated, will be a great one for the United States of America, and all NATO Nations. Based upon this understanding, I will not be imposing the Tariffs that were scheduled to go into effect on February 1st," the president wrote in a Truth Social post from Davos, Switzerland, following a meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.

In an interview with CNBC shortly after his post, the president said "we have a concept of a deal" and that he thinks it will be "a very good deal for the United States, also for them." 

"We're going to work together on something having to do with the Arctic as a whole, but also Greenland. And it has to do with the security, great security, strong security, and other things," he said.

He declined to provide specifics of the framework, saying "it's a little bit complex" and that the U.S. will "explain it down the line." He did note that the agreement would last "forever."

"It's the kind of a deal that I wanted to be able to make," Mr. Trump told CNBC.

The president addressed the annual meeting of global leaders at the World Economic Forum earlier in the day and reiterated his insistence that the U.S. needs to own the semi-autonomous Danish territory for security reasons. But, for the first time, he ruled out the use of military force to take control of the island, and said he was instead "seeking immediate negotiations" over the territory.

Over the weekend, the president threatened to impose 10% tariffs on eight European countries that opposed his Greenland push beginning next month, and said the tariff would increase to 25% if the U.S. did not acquire the island. The threat of a trade war with longstanding allies sent shockwaves through European capitals, with leaders scrambling to address the threat and defend Greenland and Denmark's autonomy before gathering in Davos.

Mr. Trump has argued that owning Greenland is critical for completing his "Golden Dome" missile defense shield, and that NATO should back his acquisition of the territory to defend against Russia and China. In his Truth Social post, he said that discussions over the missile shield will continue. 

"Additional discussions are being held concerning The Golden Dome as it pertains to Greenland," he said. "Further information will be made available as discussions progress. Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, and various others, as needed, will be responsible for the negotiations — They will report directly to me."