Trump Drops Tariff Threat After Meeting Yields ‘Framework’ of Future Greenland Deal

President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that he had reached what he called a “framework of a future deal” with NATO over Greenland, easing a standoff with European allies and backing away from plans to impose new tariffs that had rattled global markets for days.

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The announcement, delivered first in a post on his Truth Social platform and later amplified in brief remarks to reporters, followed a meeting with Mark Rutte, the NATO secretary general, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Trump said the understanding would avert tariffs that had been scheduled to take effect on Feb. 1 on goods from eight European countries that had resisted his demands over Greenland.

“We have formed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic Region,” Trump wrote, adding that “based upon this understanding, I will not be imposing the Tariffs that were scheduled to go into effect.”

The American President offered few details about what the framework entails. When asked whether the agreement involved the U.S. gaining ownership of Greenland, an outcome he has repeatedly framed as essential to national security, Trump paused before replying, “Uhh… it’s a long-term deal.”

He described the arrangement as a “work in progress,” saying the “deal is going to be put out soon” and that it “gets us everything we wanted, including real national security.”

Denmark, which governs the semi-autonomous island, had earlier ruled out negotiations over ceding Greenland to the United States. Trump did not claim that Denmark had reversed that position. 

Despite the lack of specifics, financial markets reacted swiftly. U.S. stocks jumped after the announcement, extending gains that followed days of volatility triggered by Trump’s tariff threats.

The Greenland dispute has loomed large over Davos this week, dominating conversations among diplomats and executives after Trump threatened countries including Denmark and the United Kingdom with a 10% tariff in February—and rising to 25% by June—unless they acceded to U.S. control of the island. The threats prompted European leaders to prepare countermeasures and pushed markets lower earlier in the week.

In a speech earlier on Wednesday in Davos, Trump made his most explicit case yet for the need for the U.S. to acquire Greenland, while noting he would not use military force to seize it. Instead, he called for “immediate negotiations” with Denmark, even as Danish officials reiterated that they would not “enter into any negotiations.”

Administration officials had signaled throughout the day that a climbdown was possible. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urged allies to “sit back” and “take a deep breath,” while Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told a Davos panel that the confrontation was “going to end in a reasonable manner.”

Trump’s post suggested that Rutte, the NATO Secretary General who once called him “daddy,” played a central role in defusing the crisis. Rutte did not elaborate on the deal, but told reporters they had a “very good meeting” and confirmed they reached an agreement.

Read more: Mark Rutte—The Man Who Wants to Save NATO

“His Truth Social post is exactly to the point, and I totally agree with that,” Rutte said.

Trump said that Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, special envoy Steve Witkoff, and other officials would lead further discussions on Greenland and related Arctic issues, including the “Golden Dome” missile defense system that Trump has argued would benefit from U.S. control of the island.

“This solution, if consummated, will be a great one for the United States of America, and all NATO Nations,” Trump wrote.