DONALD Trump has said he is under “no obligation to think purely of peace” – and warned that he needs “complete and total control” of Greenland to ensure global security.
Scrambling European leaders are now said to be priming their “trade bazooka” after the US president vowed to slap eight Nato members, including the UK, with 10 per cent tariffs over the row.
The Don said the levy would come into force in February if any of the allied nations opposed his proposed takeover of the self-ruling isle.
Sir Keir Starmer will hold an emergency Downing Street press conference this morning to address the American leader’s latest threats.
On Monday, Trump wrote a letter to Norwegian PM Jonas Gahr Støre, explaining why his foreign policy goals were linked to Oslo snubbing him at the Nobel Peace Prize.
The US president also accused Denmark of being unable to protect the territory from China or Russia – and called on Nato to “do something for the United States”.
He penned: “Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace, although it will always be predominant, but can now think about what is good and proper for the United States of America.”
Trump added: “Denmark cannot protect that land from Russia or China, and why do they have a ‘right of ownership’ anyway?
“There are no written documents, it’s only that a boat landed there hundreds of years ago, but we had boats landing there, also.”
He also wrote on TruthSocial that Nato had been “telling Denmark, for 20 years, that ‘you have to get the Russian threat away from Greenland’”.
Explaining how Copenhagen had failed to “do anything about it”, Trump promised in a Truth Social post: “Now it is time, and it will be done!!!”
Sir Keir confronted the Don on Sunday, saying his decision to impose tariffs on Western allies vowing to defend Greenland was “wrong”.
The PM held numerous calls on Sunday, Downing Street said, where he “reiterated his position on Greenland”.
“He said that security in the High North is a priority for all Nato allies in order to protect Euro-Atlantic interests,” No 10 said.
The unprecedented rebuke from Starmer comes amid warnings from top British diplomats that Nato is “heading for disaster” due to Trump’s extraordinary claims.
Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the UK warned the US president in a joint statement on Sunday that he risked a “dangerous downward spiral” in relations over the row.
The allies also highlighted that their recent Arctic missions and Nato deployments to Greenland posed “no threat to anyone”.
They told how the group “stand united and coordinated” in their response, and in “full solidarity with the Kingdom of Denmark and the people of Greenland”.
The eight Euro leaders in Trump’s tariff crosshairs are now mulling hitting back with their so-called “trade bazooka”.
This “anti-coercion” tool is designed to protect the union from political and economic blackmail – and could see the US get hit by £81billion in tariffs from the bloc.
But fears are mounting that the measure – which would allow the EU to limit US trading – is barely threatening enough to sway Trump’s mind.
A top UK official told the Daily Mail: “I have never seen anything like this.
“Our adversaries will be rubbing their hands with joy. We are heading towards a disaster.”
Beijing has also responded to Trump’s latest threats to take Greenland, accusing the US of using a “China threat” as an excuse to annex the territory.
They said: “We urge the United States to stop using the so-called ‘China threat’ as an excuse to pursue its own interests.”
Trump has repeatedly claimed Greenland is critical for US national security and has previously vowed to take the territory “the easy way” or “the hard way”.
His 10 per cent tariff threats on “any and all goods” sent to the US from February 1 are set to then rise to 25 per cent in June.
Sir Keir has also rejected calls to cancel the King’s US visit over Trump’s recent rhetoric.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen also pledged on Sunday: “Europe will not be blackmailed.”
In the face of the tariff threat, she said: “We want to co-operate, and it is not we who are seeking conflict.”
Secretary general of the International Chamber of Commerce in the UK, Chris Southworth, has branded the tariffs “extremely unhelpful and completely unnecessary”.
He said on Monday that Starmer should focus on “taking the temperature down” during talks with the Don.
Fears over Trump’s claims to Greenland will also be looming large over this week’s World Economic Forum in Davos.
The US president is set to to speak at the international event on Wednesday.
