Davos Forum: U.S. Treasury Secretary on relations with Europe

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said today that relations between the United States and Europe remain strong, urging trading partners to take a deep breath and allow tensions fueled by the Trump administration’s new tariff threats related to Greenland to run their course, according to AP.

“I think our relationships have never been closer,” Bessent said while speaking at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

President Donald Trump announced on Saturday the imposition of a 10% import tax, starting in February, on goods coming from eight European countries that have lined up in support of Denmark, following his intensified calls for the United States to take control of the semi-autonomous territory of Greenland, CE Report quotes ATA.

Trump has insisted that the United States needs Greenland for security reasons, citing potential threats from China and Russia.

The U.S. president’s threats have sparked outrage and a wave of diplomatic activity across Europe, as leaders consider possible countermeasures, including retaliatory tariffs and the first-ever use of the European Union’s anti-coercion instrument.