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US President Donald Trump on Saturday said that negotiations over Greenland have begun and are close to an agreement, describing the talks as critical to U.S. national security.
Responding to a reporter's question aboard Air Force One on whether there were updates on Greenland negotiations and contacts with European leaders, Trump said the process was already moving forward. "We have started a negotiation, and I think it's pretty well agreed to. I mean, they want us to do it," Trump said. "I think it's gonna be a good deal for everybody, very important deal actually, from a national security point of view, very, very important deal. I think we're going to make a deal there." Trump did not specify whether he had recently spoken with French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer or other European leaders. According to Politico, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lkke Rasmussen said earlier on Thursday that initial talks among Denmark, the United States, and Greenland over the Arctic island's future had "gone well," though the dispute remains unresolved. Politico reported that Rasmussen and Greenlandic Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt met with U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington on January 14, where the sides agreed to establish a "working group" to discuss Greenland and Arctic security amid Trump's demands to take over the self-governing Danish territory. "After that there was a huge derailment," Rasmussen was quoted as saying by Politico, referring to Trump's threat to impose tariffs on several European countries unless they agreed to hand over Greenland, a threat he later walked back after saying he had reached a "framework" toward a deal with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, the details of which have not been made public. "Things escalated, but now we are back on track," Rasmussen told reporters at the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels, adding that the first meeting of the working group "went well and took place in a constructive atmosphere and tone." Politico said Rasmussen cautioned that the dispute had not been resolved and that further talks were planned, though he said he was "a little more optimistic" than he had been a week earlier. Trump's earlier threats to seize Greenland had unsettled European capitals and strained transatlantic relations, prompting calls within the European Union for greater unity and independence on security matters. France and Germany had urged the EU to consider deploying its Anti-Coercion Instrument before Trump backed away from launching a trade war. Rasmussen credited Trump's decision to step back from tariffs to a strong display of European solidarity over Greenland, according to Politico. "It has become clear that the price for going down that path has been too high," he said. On January 21, on the 3rd day of the 2026 World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, Trump's address also included a clarification of the US's intentions regarding Greenland's sovereignty. He said the United States would not use military force to acquire the territory, softening earlier statements. He further reversed the proposed 10 per cent tariffs on European allies, which had been aimed at pressuring Denmark over Greenland's status, saying he had reached a "framework of a deal" on mineral and security rights with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. (ANI)
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