European leaders promised a unified response after US President Donald Trump threatened new tariffs unless Denmark agrees to sell Greenland, a move seen as unprecedented and potentially damaging to transatlantic ties.
EU figures including Ursula von der Leyen, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz said Europe would remain united, coordinated and committed to defending its sovereignty after Washington announced an extra 10% tariff on products from eight European countries starting February 1.
Trump said the levy on goods from Denmark, Sweden, Norway, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland and the United Kingdom could rise to 25% by June and would remain until a deal for the full purchase of Greenland is reached.
Greenland, a semi-autonomous Danish territory, recently hosted a joint European mission that angered the White House and helped trigger the tariff threat. The warning has raised fears of a new trade war, particularly after last summer’s EU-US deal that raised duties on European goods to 15% in exchange for wider cooperation.
EU Council President António Costa said he would coordinate leaders’ reactions, while von der Leyen cautioned that tariffs would undermine relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral.
Several leaders, including Macron and Sweden’s Ulf Kristersson, rejected intimidation and said Europe would not be blackmailed over Greenland or other issues. In Brussels, lawmakers urged the EU to consider deploying its anti-coercion trade instrument and freezing concessions to the US, arguing that trade is being used as political pressure.
António Costa
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