Featured Image Credit: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images & Tolga Akmen / EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Topics: Greenland, Donald Trump, Politics, US News, UK News
Britt Jones
Topics: Greenland, Donald Trump, Politics, US News, UK News
The UK prime minister has called out Donald Trump's threats to apply tariffs on NATO allies over his desire to annex Greenland after holding a phone call with the US president.
Trump’s repeated talk of wanting to take over Greenland, despite the Denmark-owned territory being an ally to NATO and to the US, has led to many reactions worldwide.
From Polish prime minister Donald Tusk arguing against Trump's repeated comments about buying the land, to Greenland's premier Jens Frederik Nielsen telling Trump to ‘stop the threats’.
The backlash has been international, with there even being an instance at the weekend when Vanessa Williams was heckled regarding Trump and Greenland while singing the National Anthem in London, UK.
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British MPs have since loudly declared that Trump is acting like a ‘gangster’, with senior conservative Simon Hoare stating: “The civilised world can deal with Trump no longer. He is a gangster pirate."
Now, the UK Government has released a statement which described the actions PM Sir Keir Starmer has taken in light of Trump’s motives against Greenland.
The statement, published yesterday (18 January), stated that Starmer had spoken on the phone with the prime minister of Denmark, Mette Frederiksen, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, and also with Trump.
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Regarding his talk with Trump, the Starmer allegedly told him that 'applying tariffs on allies for pursuing the collective security of Nato allies is wrong', per Downing Street.
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy further shared the UK’s stance on the issue when she appeared on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, telling her that Greenland’s sovereignty is ‘non-negotiable'.
“We believe it is wrong, we believe it is deeply unhelpful,” she said.
The PM said last night as he addressed his nation that the UK stands with Denmark’s ownership of the land, stating: “Our position on Greenland is very clear – it is part of the Kingdom of Denmark and its future is a matter for the Greenlanders and the Danes.”
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Now, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom all released a joint statement against Trump’s threats to impose a 25 per cent tariff on countries that oppose his want to take the tiny nation.
Published 24 hours ago, the NATO allies shared they are ‘committed to strengthening Arctic security as a shared transatlantic interest', but there is already a 'pre-coordinated Danish exercise’ known as the ‘Arctic Endurance’, which is conducted with Allies, and ‘responds to this necessity'.
The statement continued: “We stand in full solidarity with the Kingdom of Denmark and the people of Greenland. Building on the process begun last week, we stand ready to engage in a dialogue based on the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity that we stand firmly behind.”
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As for the tariffs, the statement continued: “Tariff threats undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral. We will continue to stand united and coordinated in our response. We are committed to upholding our sovereignty.”