President Trump will come face-to-face with European allies this week at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, as tensions build on both sides of the Atlantic over Trump\u2019s insistence on the U.S. acquiring Greenland. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Saturday, the president slapped 10 percent tariffs on Denmark and its European allies to pressure them over the future of Greenland. Overnight, the president criticized the U.K. and shared a screenshot of a text conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron\u2002<\/u><\/a>in which he voiced his discontent with Trump on the issue. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The high-stakes meetings in Switzerland could play a significant role in determining the future of Washington\u2019s involvement in the Danish territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer,<\/u><\/a> who has led the country\u2019s charm offensive on Trump during his second term, issued a rare criticism of Trump\u2019s rhetoric on Greenland on Monday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAny decision about the future status of Greenland belongs to the people of Greenland and the kingdom of Denmark alone,\u201d Starmer said at a news conference. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Meanwhile, Macron appeared to take a veiled jab at Trump during his address on stage at Davos, telling the audience, \u201cconflict has been normalized.\u201d The French leader said the \u201cendless accumulation of new tariffs\u201d is \u201cfundamentally unacceptable\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEven more so when they are used as leverage against territorial sovereignty,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Mick Mulvaney,<\/u><\/a> who served as Trump\u2019s chief of staff during his first administration, warned that Trump\u2019s actions on Greenland are leading to a growingly isolated U.S. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn the first term, Trump was very clear to say \u2018America First\u2019 was not \u2018America Alone.\u2019 You get the impression that is changing in the second term,\u201d Mulvaney said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Former U.S. Ambassador to Denmark Alan Leventhal, who served in the Biden\u2002<\/u><\/a>administration, said the announced U.S. tariffs have only \u201cunified\u201d the European Union. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe should expect the EU countries to stand up to the threats of higher tariffs,\u201d Leventhal said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In response to a question by The Hill during a briefing marking his first year in office, Trump said he still has a good relationship with Starmer and Macron, saying they get along \u201cvery well.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey get a little bit rough when they\u2019re, you know, when I\u2019m not around, but when I\u2019m around they treat me very nicely,\u201d Trump said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n However, when asked during the briefing whether he would attend the G7 meeting in Paris that Macron proposed to him over text, Trump said he would not. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, I wouldn\u2019t do that,\u201d the president said. \u201cBecause you know, Emmanuel\u2019s not going to be there for very long, and there\u2019s not longevity there. He\u2019s a friend of mine. He\u2019s a nice guy.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n Macron\u2019s term as president of France ends in 2027, and he is term limited. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump and his allies have repeatedly argued Washington controlling Greenland would bolster U.S. national security amid concerns Russia and China are growing their influence in the Arctic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt matters to us because it matters to China and Russia,\u201d said Nathan Sales,<\/u><\/a> who served as the coordinator for counterterrorism and special envoy to the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS during the first Trump administration. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cChina and Russia, long-term, will have an interest in exercising interest over Greenland, and that is not in the interest of the United States,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n\n\n\n