“We need Greenland for national security. So I may do that,” a CNBC report quoted Trump as saying at the White House during a health-care-related event.
The remarks underline Trump’s willingness to deploy tariffs as a foreign policy tool, a tactic he has used repeatedly to pressure allies and rivals alike. His comments suggest that economic coercion could now be extended to advance Washington’s ambitions in the Arctic.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request from CNBC for further clarification on Trump’s remarks.
The Trump administration has previously acknowledged that it is weighing multiple options to secure control of Greenland, including the potential use of the US military. Trump has argued that American ownership of the Danish territory is essential due to security threats posed by China and Russia, despite the US already maintaining a major military installation on the island.
Washington has also floated the possibility of purchasing Greenland, an idea that has been firmly rejected by both Greenland’s government and Denmark, which have repeatedly stressed that the territory is not for sale and has no desire to become part of the United States.
Trump’s tariff threat on Greenland followed similar comments made during the same event about drug pricing. He said he had warned leaders of several countries that unless they agreed to raise drug prices under a “most favoured nations” framework, they would face steep tariffs on all exports to the US.
“I may do that for Greenland too. I may put a tariff on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security,” the report further quoted Trump.
A delegation from Greenland and Denmark, after meeting Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington on Thursday, said there was a “fundamental disagreement” with Trump’s position.
Since returning to office, Trump has significantly expanded the use of tariffs, lifting the average US tariff rate to an estimated 17%. Many of the levies were imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), a move that has been challenged in court and is now before the US Supreme Court.
Trump has warned that his broader economic agenda could unravel if the court rules against him. “I hope we win the Supreme Court case, because if we don’t, [it’d] be a shame for our country,” the report said.
