JAKARTA - British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has confirmed that Britain will not give in to its principles and values regarding Greenland's future despite facing tariff threats from the United States.
"I will not give in, Britain will not give in to our principles and values regarding Greenland's future under the threat of tariffs," Starmer said in a weekly Prime Minister's Question Time in the House of Commons, Wednesday, January 21, reported by ANTARA from Anadolu.
The statement came after US President Donald Trump last week said Washington would impose a 10 percent tariff on goods from eight European countries, including the UK, starting February 1, which would rise to 25 percent in June until an agreement was reached "full and total purchase of Greenland."
Responding to Trump's criticism on Tuesday of Britain's deal on the Chagos Islands, Starmer said the statement was made "specifically to put pressure on me and Britain" regarding London's stance on Greenland.
He said Trump's statement calling the Chagos deal a "major act of stupidity" was at odds with the "welcoming words and support" he had previously expressed.
Starmer also pressed Conservative Party leader and main opposition, Kemi Badenoch, for her comments on the Chagos deal, accusing Badenoch of "supporting arguments intended to weaken the UK's position on Greenland."
In May, Britain signed an agreement to hand over sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius in return for securing a strategic British-US military base.
Through the agreement, the East African country gained control over the Chagos Islands, while the US and the UK were able to operate the strategic Diego Garcia military base for the next 99 years.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
