‘Very productive meeting’: Trump backs off on Greenland tariff threat; claims to have reached ‘framework’ for deal with European allies

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday waived tariffs scheduled to hit European allies after claiming that he had reached a framework for a deal over Greenland. In a social media post on Truth Social, Trump said the tariffs that had been scheduled to take effect on February 1 would no longer go ahead. “Based upon a very productive meeting that I have had with the Secretary General of NATO, Mark Rutte, we have formed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic region. This solution, if consummated, will be a great one for the United States of America and all NATO nations,” Trump said. “Based upon this understanding, I will not be imposing the tariffs that were scheduled to go into effect on February 1. Additional discussions are being held concerning the Golden Dome as it pertains to Greenland. 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. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” he added. Trump, however, did not provide any details on the framework, but added that his threatened tariffs against European countries resisting his push to acquire Greenland were now off the table. Earlier, in a speech on Wednesday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Trump for the first time ruled out using force but demanded “immediate negotiations” to acquire the island from Denmark. “We probably won’t get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force, where we would be, frankly, unstoppable — but I won’t do that,” Trump said.