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Voter Turnout Likely to Exceed 55pc

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  Voter Turnout Likely to Exceed 55pc, Says Touhid Hossain Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain has expressed optimism that voter turnout in the 13th National Parliamentary Election, scheduled for 12 February, will exceed 55 percent. He made the remarks on Sunday while responding to journalists’ questions at the closing session of an election-focused training workshop in Dhaka. The two-day programme was organised for members of the Diplomatic Correspondents Association Bangladesh (DCAB) with support from the Media Resources Development Initiative (MRDI). Asked whether the government could hold the election smoothly amid reports that Awami League leaders based in India were campaigning for a ‘No’ vote in the referendum, Touhid Hossain said many were advocating ‘No’ without fully understanding the issue. He reiterated that the government wants the ‘Yes’ vote to succeed. He said the government has spent more than a year preparing reform proposals through various commissions and i...
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Trump Floats Tariffs for Countries Opposing U.S. Plan to Acquire Greenland

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Trump Floats Tariffs for Countries Opposing U.S. Plan to Acquire Greenland

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump on Jan. 16 suggested that the United States could impose tariffs on countries that oppose his proposal for Washington to acquire Greenland, framing the move as a matter of national security.

“I may put a tariff on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland,” Trump said during a rural health roundtable in the East Room of the White House. “Because we need Greenland for national security.”

His comments come amid ongoing discussions between U.S. and Danish officials over the future of the world’s largest island. On Jan. 14, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio met at the White House with Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen and Greenland’s Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt. The talks led to the creation of a working group tasked with examining potential future governance arrangements for the Arctic territory.

Trump has repeatedly argued that U.S. control of Greenland is critical to defending the Western Hemisphere. In a Jan. 14 post on Truth Social, he said the acquisition would be “vital for the Golden Dome that we are building,” and suggested NATO should help facilitate the move to counter Chinese and Russian influence.

“NATO becomes far more formidable and effective with Greenland in the hands of the UNITED STATES,” Trump wrote. “Anything less than that is unacceptable.”

The president first raised the idea of purchasing Greenland in 2019, during his first term in office.

Meanwhile, a bipartisan delegation of 11 U.S. lawmakers, led by Democrats, arrived in Denmark on Jan. 16 to hold talks with Danish and Greenlandic officials. Speaking at the University of Copenhagen, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D–N.H.) acknowledged widespread concern in Denmark and Greenland but urged restraint. “These concerns are understandable when trust is shaken,” she said. “But I believe saner heads will prevail.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said earlier this month that Trump is weighing a broad range of options to gain control of the territory. While emphasizing diplomacy as the administration’s preferred approach, she did not rule out other measures.

“All options are always on the table for President Trump as he examines what’s in the best interest of the United States,” Leavitt said, adding that diplomacy remains the president’s first choice.

Denmark’s ties to Greenland date back to colonization in 1721, with formal control established three decades later. Greenland gained home rule in 1979 and expanded autonomy under subsequent self-government legislation, though Denmark continues to oversee foreign affairs and defense.

Greenlandic leaders have firmly rejected any challenge to the island’s autonomy. In a Jan. 9 statement, Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen and leaders of multiple political parties said Greenland’s future must be decided by its own people.

“We don’t want to be Americans, we don’t want to be Danes, we want to be Greenlanders,” the statement said. “The future of Greenland must be decided by the Greenlandic people. No other country can interfere in this.”

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