Greenland row: EU to hold emergency summit on Trump tariffs

The European Union will convene an extraordinary meeting of the heads of government of the 27 member states in the coming days, Council President Antonio Costa said on Sunday evening.

The European Council meeting will be held "given the significance of recent developments and in order to further coordinate," Costa said on X.

Costa said EU member states over their meeting earlier this evening reaffirmed their commitment to:

• Unity on the principles of international law, territorial integrity and national sovereignty
• Unity in support of and solidarity with Denmark and Greenland
• Recognition of the shared transatlantic interest in peace and security in the Arctic, notably working through NATO
• Shared assessment that tariffs would undermine transatlantic relations and are incompatible with the EU-US trade agreement
• Readiness to defend ourselves against any form of coercion
• Readiness to continue engaging constructively with the US on all issues of common interest

US President Donald Trump has doubled down on his threats to deploy troops to Greenland, this time accusing Denmark of not doing enough combat potential threats from Russia.

"NATO has been telling Denmark, for 20 years, that 'you have to get the Russian threat away from Greenland'," he wrote on his Truth social platform.

"Unfortunately, Denmark has been unable to do anything about it. Now it is time, and it will be done!!!"

The European Union is committed to upholding the sovereignty of Greenland and Denmark, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said.

Von der Leyen posted to X after speaking to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

"We will always protect our strategic economic and security interests," von der Leyen said. "We will face these challenges to our European solidarity with steadiness and resolve."

An emergency meeting of EU ambassadors in Brussels on Sunday ended after about three hours.

Earlier in the day, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said she was pleased with the consistent messages of support from the rest of the continent, adding: "Europe will not be blackmailed." Denmark owns the semi-autonomous Arctic island.

There were suggestions that French President Emmanuel Macron wanted the EU to activate a never-before-used "anti-coercion instrument" against the United States if Trump makes good on his tariff threat.

This was likely discussed at the ambassadors' meeting but would only be used after agreement by Europe's leaders.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told President Donald Trump during a phone call that "applying tariffs on allies for pursuing the collective security of NATO allies is wrong," his office said.

The United Kingdom is among eight countries facing Trump's planned tariffs: 10% on all goods starting February 1, rising to 25% on June 1, until Washington secures a deal to buy Greenland from Denmark. The same tariffs would apply to Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Finland.

Starmer held a flurry of calls on Sunday afternoon, including with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

"In ‍all his calls, the prime minister reiterated his position on ​Greenland. He said that security in the High North is a ⁠priority ​for all NATO allies in order ‌to protect Euro-Atlantic ‌interests," his spokeswoman said.

"He also said that applying tariffs on allies for pursuing the collective security of NATO allies is wrong."

The United States is more than its president, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said Sunday.

Speaking after a meeting with his Norwegian counterpart in Oslo, Rasmussen said there are "checks and balances in American society."

He said President Trump's threat to impose tariffs on countries opposing a US takeover of Greenland threatened the world order "as we know it" and the future of the NATO military alliance.

But he added that Denmark would continue to resolve the dispute through diplomacy.

"Even though we are now being confronted with these threats, we will naturally try to stay on that path," Rasmussen said. He had traveled to Washington a few days earlier to meet Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance.

Norway's foreign minister, Espen Barth Eide, said NATO members — including the eight nations threatened with tariffs — are ready to work with the US to strengthen security in the Arctic.

Ambassadors from the European Union's 27 countries have convened for an emergency meeting to discuss President Donald Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on eight European countries opposing US control of Greenland.

Cyprus, holder of the rotating six-month EU presidency, convened the meeting.

DW correspondent Jack Parrock reports from Brussels that officials are discussing what to do going forward.

"What are the trade responses on the table, and what is available to them," he said, adding that a news conference is not expected following the meeting.

France's President Emmanuel Macron has indicated he wants to activate a never-before-used "anti-coercion instrument" against the United States (see earlier entry).

However, officials in Brussels are not expected to decide on using the measure immediately.

"It is unlikely that they will move quickly on using that trade 'bazooka' instrument, but they want to wield the threat... so they certainly won't take it off the table," Parrock said.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said he discussed the security situation in Greenland and the Arctic with US President Donald Trump.

"We will continue working on this, and I look forward to seeing him in Davos later this week," Rutte wrote on social media. 

The annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) is taking place in Davos and Trump said he would join the more than 60 heads of state and government, planning to attend. 

Germany's Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul expressed skepticism that the EU-US trade agreement will be ratified anytime soon, citing rising tensions over planned US tariffs aimed at eight NATO member states.

Speaking to German public broadcaster ARD, Wadephul said Europe must respond to President Donald Trump's tariff threat against the so-called Greenland eight countries.

"We must not allow ourselves to be blackmailed," he told the Bericht aus Berlin program.

"Europe is politically and economically much stronger than some had thought so far, and I think we should make that count now," Wadephul said.

He declined to outline what specific countermeasures the EU might adopt, adding tariffs would be "poison for transatlantic relations" and that there would now be intensive talks with Washington.

A provisional EU-US tariff deal reached last year still requires approval by the European Parliament.

Read more about Trump's tariffs by clicking here.

French President Emmanuel Macron is working to coordinate a European response to President Donald Trump's Greenland tariffs and is pushing to activate the European Union's Anti-Coercion Instrument, according to sources in his office.

The tool, designed to tackle economic intimidation from third countries, empowers the European Commission to respond with a range of countermeasures.

These include tariffs, export controls, restrictions on intellectual property and investment flows, and blocking access to the EU single market.

The EU considered using it last year when Trump announced his "big beautiful tariffs." But a provisional EU-US tariff deal was reached instead, and the Anti-Coercion Instrument was never used.

The agreement, which still requires European Parliament approval, would impose a 15% US tariff on most European goods while scrapping tariffs on US industrial products.

The increasing tariff of 10% over the Greenland issue would be in addition to that. 

If you're just joining us, here's a summary of the latest developments:

• US President Donald Trump vowed on Saturday to implement a wave of increasing tariffs on EU members Denmark, Sweden, France, Germany, the Netherlands ⁠and Finland, along with ‍Britain and Norway, until the United States is allowed to take control of Greenland, a Danish territory. 
• Seven European countries issued a joint statement pledging solidarity with Denmark and Greenland. They, along with Denmark, are facing President Donald Trump's punitive tariffs and warned that the measures, as well as the US president's proposed annexation push, risk damaging transatlantic relations and undermining Arctic security.
• Cyprus, holder of the rotating six-month EU ⁠presidency, summoned ambassadors to an emergency meeting in Brussels on Sunday at 4 p.m. UTC.
• Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen sharply criticized Trump, saying Europe was not "seeking this conflict."
• A German military reconnaissance team of 15 soldiers deployed earlier in the week to Greenland left the Arctic island on Sunday. The Bundeswehr said the team had completed its mission. 

Europe on the back foot as Trump pressures over Greenland

 

German industry groups are warning of severe fallout from new US tariffs linked to President Donald Trump's push to take control of Greenland.

Trump announced duties of 10% on goods from several European countries, including Germany, starting in February. The tariffs would rise to 25% in June unless a deal is struck.

Germany's mechanical engineering association VDMA says Europe must not give in to what it calls blackmail, urging Brussels to consider using its Anti-Coercion Instrument.

"If the EU gives in here, it will only embolden the American president to make the next absurd demand and threaten further tariffs," VDMA President Bertram Kawlath said.

The automotive industry group VDA warns the tariffs would impose enormous costs at a time of economic strain.

VDA President Hildegard Müller urged the European Commission to pursue a "smart, strategic and coordinated response" with affected countries, adding that the United States must respect Greenland's right to self-determination.

The German Chamber of Commerce is calling for a united European response, saying economic pressure must be met with solidarity.

"Economic coercion can only be countered with a clear and common European position," Volker Treier, the chamber's head of foreign trade, said.

Eight European countries facing new US tariffs by President Donald Trump over their joint opposition to his Greenland demands warned that the measures "undermine trans-Atlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral."

The countries, Germany, France, Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Netherlands, and the UK have deployed a small number of troops to Greenland on Denmark's request earlier this week in a so-called reconnaissance mission.

"As members of NATO, we are committed to strengthening Arctic security as a shared transatlantic interest," they said in a joint statement.

"Tariff threats undermine trans-Atlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral. We will continue to stand united and coordinated in our response. We are committed to upholding our sovereignty," they said.

German soldiers deployed to Denmark were meant to explore possible military contributions to bolster the security of the region, the German defense ministry said in a statement earlier this week. DW's chief political correspondent, Nina Haase, breaks it down:

The German reconnaissance team that arrived in Greenland on Friday is departing the Danish territory as planned.

Fifteen soldiers were leaving the Arctic island on a civilian flight to Copenhagen on Sunday midday. The deployment was scheduled from the start to last only a few days and came at the request of Denmark.

The team was meant to assess conditions for possible NATO exercises, with the spokesman of the command control center having said Sunday that the mission was completed. "The results of the reconnaissance will be analyzed in the coming days."

It comes as US President Donald Trump threatened new tariffs on eight countries involved in the mission.

Trump insists Greenland should belong to the United States for security reasons, citing threats from China and Russia.

European NATO allies reject that idea, saying the alliance can safeguard the Arctic collectively.