Trump Threatens 200% Tariffs On France, Shares Macron's Private Message

US President Donald Trump has threatened 200 per cent tariffs on French wine and champagne over Paris's intentions to decline his invitation to join his "Board of Peace". The US leader also shared in a Truth Social post a private message he received from French President Emmanuel Macron regarding Greenland.

Trump's all-out attack on France came after Paris derided Washington by mocking US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's justification of why Trump is fixated on the Arctic territory, part of Denmark.

ALSO READ: France "Cannot Accept", Canada Won't Pay $1 Billion For Trump's 'Board Of Peace'

What Trump Said

"I'll put a 200 per cent tariff on his wines and champagnes. And he'll join. But he doesn't have to join," Trump said, referring to French President Emmanuel Macron. The US-proposed board was originally conceived to oversee the rebuilding of war-torn Gaza, but the charter does not appear to limit its role to the occupied Palestinian territory.

He later posted a private message from Macron, where the French President told Trump that the two agree on the issues of Iran and Syria but told him he did not "understand" what Trump was "doing on Greenland?"

The French president offered to meet Trump and other G7 leaders on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, noting he could also invite Ukrainians, Danes, Syrians and Russians. He also offered to take Trump out to dinner on Thursday.

ALSO READ: Trade War Over Greenland "In No One's Interest": UK PM Keir Starmer

France 'Mocks' Trump

The development came after news agency AFP reported that France "does not intend to answer favourably" to Trump's 'Board of Peace' invitation.

The board's charter "goes beyond the sole framework of Gaza", the source close to the French president said.

France also mocked the US over Trump's Greenland push. In a post on X, the official account of the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs mocked Scott Bessent's justification of Trump's move, drawing parallels to deliberately causing harm to prevent a hypothetical future crisis.

ALSO READ: Donald Trump Wants Greenland For Ego, Not Security: Ian Bremmer To NDTV

"If there were a fire someday, firefighters would intervene – so better burn the house now," the post read.

Continuing with similar analogies, he added, "If a shark might attack someday, intervention would follow – so better eat the lifeguard now," and, "If there were a crash someday, damage would occur – so better ram the car now."

The French response came after Bessent defended Trump's move, saying the 79-year-old president was focused on future threats from Russia in the Arctic region.

"Down the road, this fight for the Arctic is real... We would keep our Nato guarantees. And if there were an attack on Greenland from Russia, from some other area, we would get dragged in," he said.

France's Response

Trump's threats to impose 200 per cent tariffs on French wine and champagne are "unacceptable" and "ineffective," a source close to French President Emmanuel Macron told AFP on Tuesday.

"Tariff threats to influence our foreign policy are unacceptable and ineffective," the source told AFP after Trump made the threat over France's intentions to decline his invitation to join his "Board of Peace."