A roundup of the news on Thursday

Løkke reacts to Trump’s tariffs

US President Donald Trump announced sweeping new tariffs Wednesday on imports from countries around the world, notably China and the European Union.

The measures have sent markets into a tailspin and upended decades-long free trade norms, news agency AFP writes.

Shortly after Trump’s proclamation, separate tariffs of 25 percent on all foreign-made cars and light trucks went into effect.

Trump reserved some of the heaviest blows for what he called “nations that treat us badly”, including a 20 percent tariff on all goods from the EU.

The EU and China immiediately vowed retaliation against the levies.

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said the new measures threatened global prosperity.

“Global trade brought us to a better place: in a generation the world has become richer, extreme poverty has been reduced, child mortality has declined and we all live longer,” he said.

“Saddened to see all that jeopardised due to an — for Europe — unwanted trade war.”

Left-wing party pulls ahead in Greenland municipal elections

Greenland’s social-democratic party, Siumut, won three of the territory’s five municipalities in local elections held in the autonomous territory this week, according to results published on Wednesday.

“My dear Siumut, you have gathered many people across the country, you have created great hope,” party leader Vivian Motzfeldt said in a Facebook post.

The party favours a gradual move towards independence for the Danish autonomous territory, like the three other parties in the coalition government.

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Held only three weeks after legislative elections, where Siumut — a major player in the Greenlandic political landscape since the 1970s — finished fourth, the municipal elections did not generate as much enthusiasm among the around 41,000 voters in the island.

Only 52.6 percent of those eligible turned out to vote, compared to the more than 70 percent who voted in the general election.

US embassies say certain foreign firms must ‘self-certify’ with Trump diversity rules

The United States is not planning to verify foreign firms over their diversity programmes but wants certain companies to self-certify compliance with new US rules, two of its main European embassies told AFP yesterday.

“There is no ‘verification’ required beyond asking contractors and grantees to self-certify their compliance — in other words, we are just asking them to complete one additional piece of paperwork,” the US embassies in Paris and Berlin said in identical statements.

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The spokespersons for both missions said that the rule applied only to firms having contracts with or grants from US missions.

Their statements confirmed that US missions were reviewing all contracts and grants to “ensure they are consistent” with recent executive orders issued by President Donald Trump, in particular his order targeting DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) programmes.

EU countries including Denmark have criticised the efforts to dictate diversity policies at European companies.

READ ALSO: Denmark calls for EU response to US diversity demands on businesses

Frederiksen arrives in Nuuk and responds to criticism of visit

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen arrived in Greenland capital Nuuk yesterday and said her objective for the visit was to stand with the autonomous territory amid ongoing pressure and threats of annexation from the Trump administration.

The timing of Frederiksen’s visit has been questioned, notably by new Greenlandic foreign minister Vivian Motzfeldt, who said it should not take place until the new government has officially taken office next Monday.

“I have seen the discussion that has been taking place, and I want to say to everyone in Greenland that I have only one wish: to do everything I can to take care of this wonderful country and support Greenland in a very difficult situation,” Frederiksen told reporters.

“Regardless of the discussions we may have along the way about the Danish kingdom and the Greenlandic-Danish relationship, it is clear that, with the pressure from the Americans on Greenland, regarding sovereignty, borders, and the future, we must stand together,” she also said.

Polls have shown a majority of Greenlanders support eventual independence and do not want to become part of the US.