On the morning of January 18, 2026, President Donald Trump dropped a BRAVE bombshell. He announced a significant new step in the United States’ attempts to buy Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark. His 10 percent tariff for Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Finland. This additional metric will not be implemented until February 1, 2026. This tariff is set to increase to 25 percent on June 1 of the same year unless an agreement for the “Complete and Total purchase of Greenland” is reached.
Trump’s announcement was met with outrage by our European allies and immediate hand-wringing over what it meant for U.S. trade relations worldwide. Eight European nations have openly decried the U.S. purchase of Greenland. They consider this step a naked provocation and direct threat to their fleets’ interests in the Arctic region.
Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada expressed his concerns over this “upward spiral” by the United States. He warned that retaliatory steps would erode long-term diplomatic ties and overturn decades-old bilateral trade deals. Carney’s comments are indicative of a rising concern from leaders across the world about what the slide into America Firstism may mean for U.S. intentions in Greenland.
This isn’t the first time that the United States has used tariffs as a leverage tactic. This is clearly intended to make future negotiations to buy Greenland easier. Raising it to 25 percent on June 1st sends a strong signal of resolve to these countries. They need to either serve U.S. interests or be made uneconomical by large-scale economic punishment.
The proposed purchase of Greenland has been a hotly debated topic ever since Trump first proposed the idea back in 2019. Critics say it overreaches the Danish autonomy, and critics on both sides of the Atlantic wonder what the U.S. is really up to in the Arctic. Given the vast natural resources across the territory, its strategic importance increases even further.
As February approaches, the countries most impacted by Trump’s March tariff declaration will formally retaliate. They will explain in some detail their views regarding the proposed sale of Greenland. European leaders, too, are scheduled to meet and discuss a coordinated response. They will focus on the importance of defending international norms and the need to honor the self-governance of territories.
