Did Trump punish EU over Greenland minerals deal?
U.S. President
Donald Trump
on Friday announced sweeping 50% tariffs on all goods imported from the European Union, escalating tensions in transatlantic trade.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump declared: 'The European Union, which was formed for the primary purpose of taking advantage of the United States on TRADE, has been very difficult to deal with. Their powerful Trade Barriers, VAT Taxes, ridiculous Corporate Penalties, Non-Monetary Trade Barriers, Monetary Manipulations, unfair and unjustified lawsuits against American companies, and more, have led to a trade deficit with the U.S. of more than $250 billion a year, a number which is totally unacceptable... Therefore, I am recommending a straight
50% tariff
on the European Union, starting on June 1, 2025. There is no tariff if the product is built or manufactured in the United States.'
While the move was officially framed as a response to long-standing trade disputes, it comes on the heels of a significant minerals deal between the EU and Greenland—raising questions about whether the tariffs were also a retaliatory gesture.
Greenland, a resource-rich autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark, recently issued a 30-year mining permit to a Danish-French consortium, effectively sidelining U.S. interests in the Arctic region. The license allows Greenland Anorthosite Mining (GAM) to extract anorthosite—a white rock rich in aluminum, micro silica, and calcium—intended for export to the fiberglass industry.
According to Newsweek, the permit was granted to GAM, a company backed by the French Jean Boulle Group and real estate investment firms from Denmark and Greenland.
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The decision comes as a blow to Trump, who had previously expressed public interest in acquiring Greenland, citing its strategic location and abundance of natural resources, including rare minerals, oil, and natural gas. Many analysts interpreted the EU-Greenland deal as a diplomatic snub, potentially fueling Trump's aggressive response.
While the White House has not officially linked the tariffs to the Greenland deal, the timing has led to widespread speculation that the EU's growing presence in the Arctic—at the expense of U.S. ambitions—may have contributed to Trump's latest trade offensive.
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