Trump threatens 200% tariff on French wine to pressure Macron into joining ‘Board of Peace’ as Europe braces for wider rift
U.S. President Donald Trump said he will impose a 200% tariff on French wines and champagne, a bid to pressure President Emmanuel Macron to join his proposed “Board of Peace,” as tensions with Europe deepened over the initiative and Trump’s renewed push to acquire Greenland.
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“Did he say that? Well, nobody wants him because he will be out of office very soon,” Trump said when told Macron would not participate. “I’ll put a 200% tariff on his wines and champagnes, and he’ll join, but he doesn’t have to join.” A source close to Macron said France intends to decline the invitation at this stage.
Trump first floated the board last September as part of a plan to end the war in Gaza. A formal invitation sent last week broadened the mandate to resolving conflicts worldwide, according to documents shared with multiple governments. A draft charter seen by Reuters asks countries to contribute $1 billion in cash if they want their membership to last more than three years. Governments reacted cautiously, and several diplomats warned the initiative could undermine the work of the United Nations by creating a parallel forum run from Washington.
Trump said he has invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to be a member of the board. “He’s been invited,” Trump told reporters.
The president also escalated his rhetoric on Greenland, saying he did not expect European leaders to “push back too much” against U.S. plans to buy the autonomous Danish territory. “I don’t think they’re gonna push back too much. We have to have it. They have to have this done,” he said, adding that Denmark “can’t protect it,” though he called Danes “wonderful people.” Trump said he had a “very good” telephone call with “NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte” concerning Greenland and that he had agreed to a meeting of “various parties” during the World Economic Forum in Davos, without specifying participants.
Asked by NBC News whether he would use force to seize Greenland, Trump said, “No comment.”
In Brussels, Irish Tánaiste and Finance Minister Simon Harris is set to meet senior European commissioners amid concern that the tariff threats — and the Greenland dispute — could spiral into a broader economic confrontation between the United States and Europe. EU finance ministers will also convene to discuss potential U.S. tariffs.
Over the weekend, Trump threatened tariffs on six EU countries as well as Norway and the United Kingdom because they opposed his ambitions to take over Greenland. As the EU trades as a bloc, any additional U.S. duties are likely to hit all member states, including Ireland. Last year, after months of negotiations, Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen agreed to cap tariffs at 15% on EU goods entering the United States — a fragile truce now at risk.
Harris will meet Economy Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis and Financial Services Commissioner Maria Luís Albuquerque. “We can achieve so much more through cooperation than conflict,” Harris said in a statement, calling this an “existential moment” for Europe. He warned of a “spiral of events” that could inflict significant damage on European and U.S. economies. “Now is a time for cool heads and for further dialogue. Europe will stand united and respond accordingly, but for now dialogue is so important to try and find a way forward.”
Additional reporting by AFP.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
