- - Trump considering new tariffs on countries that oppose his annexation plans for Greenland

Kevin Liptak, Laura Sharman, CNNJanuary 17, 2026 at 6:20 AM

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An American flag is displayed on the facade of the US consulate in Nuuk, Greenland, on January 14. - Evgeniy Maloletka/AP

US President Donald Trump said he is considering applying new tariffs on countries that oppose his ambition of annexing Greenland.

Trump has insisted for months that the US should control the world’s largest island, declaring earlier this week that anything less would be “unacceptable.”

He argued that the US acquiring the Arctic landmass, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark, would serve its national security interests and in turn strengthen the defense alliance.

Speaking Friday at the White House, Trump suggested punishing countries with tariffs if they don’t back that plan.

“I may put a tariff on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security,” Trump said during an event focused on health care. The president made the remark as he recounted using tariffs to force other nations to cooperate on a plan to lower drug prices in the United States.

This was the first time he proposed using import taxes to advance the Greenland issue, but he did not specify which countries might be targeted or what authority he would invoke.

President Donald Trump departs Air Force One after arriving at Palm Beach International Airport to attend a Road Dedication Ceremony at his private Mar-a-Lago club, in West Palm Beach, Florida, on January 16, 2026. - Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Greenland is rich in natural resources, including oil, gas and rare earth minerals. Its location between North America and the Arctic makes it ideal for missile early-warning systems and monitoring vessels in the region.

US control of the territory faces opposition not only from Denmark and Greenland but also from several other nations – and is supported by only 25% of Americans, according to a CNN poll.

Longstanding alliances

By raising the prospect of NATO’s largest and most powerful member buying or annexing the territory of another, Trump’s declarations have thrown Europe’s decades-old, US-led security alliance into crisis.

His push to control Greenland has prompted outrage among European nations.

Denmark warned an attack on Greenland would effectively end NATO, and announced on Wednesday that it was expanding its military presence there, “in close cooperation with NATO allies.”

France, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland, Norway and Sweden have all since confirmed they are deploying military personnel to the island this week.

People make their way to the port in Nuuk, Greenland, on January 16, 2026. - Alessandro Rampazzo/AFP/Getty Images

Canada and France have said they plan to open consulates in Nuuk, Greenland’s capital, in the coming weeks.

Earlier this week, the Danish foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and his Greenlandic equivalent Vivian Motzfeldt visited the White House for inconclusive meetings about Trump’s plan.

Rasmussen said the pair had “a frank but also constructive discussion” with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, but their “perspectives continue to differ.”

Still, Rasmussen said the parties have agreed to form “a high-level working group to explore if we can find a common way forward” that is expected to meet in the coming weeks.

“We agreed that it makes sense to try to sit down on a high level to explore whether there’s possibilities to accommodate the concerns of the president while we at the same time, respect the red lines of the Kingdom of Denmark. So this is the work we will start,” he said at a press conference after the meeting.

Denmark's Foreign Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen and Greenland's Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt speak with members of the media following a meeting in Washington D.C. on January 14, 2026 REUTERS/Nathan Howard - Nathan Howard/Reuters

Denmark’s military relationship with the US remains unchanged despite Trump’s remarks, the chief of its Joint Arctic Command in Greenland, Major General Soren Andersen, told CNN Friday.

Andersen said the command has invited the US to participate in military exercises on the island, adding that the Arctic Endurance mission is designed to deter Russia and protect NATO’s northern flank.

He noted, however, that there is “no immediate threat to Greenland.”

Trump’s ability to put in place sweeping country-specific tariffs could soon be limited, with the Supreme Court expected to issue a verdict in a landmark case.

Regardless of how the justices rule, Trump will continue to have a plethora of ways to increase tariffs, but the alternatives are more limited than the approach he’s taken to single out countries.

CNN’s Nic Robertson, Ben Brown, Kit Maher, Lex Harvey and Elisabeth Buchwald contributed to this report.

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