{"id":13941,"date":"2026-02-15T12:48:37","date_gmt":"2026-02-15T12:48:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/13941\/"},"modified":"2026-02-15T12:48:37","modified_gmt":"2026-02-15T12:48:37","slug":"trumps-greenland-threats-spark-outrage-and-defiance-from-eu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/13941\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump’s Greenland threats spark outrage and defiance from EU"},"content":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 President Donald Trump\u2019s<\/a> pledge to provoke a sweeping tariff fight<\/a> with Europe to get his way in taking control of Greenland has left many of America\u2019s closest allies warning of a rupture with Washington capable of shattering the NATO alliance that had once seemed unshakable. <\/p>\n

The European Union\u2019s top official on Tuesday called Trump\u2019s planned new tariffs on eight of its countries over Greenland<\/a> a \u201cmistake\u201d and questioned Trump\u2019s trustworthiness. French President Emmanuel Macron said the EU could retaliate by deploying one of its most powerful economic tools<\/a>, known colloquially as a trade \u201cbazooka.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"President<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump speaks with reporters after arriving at Palm Beach International Airport, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo\/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump speaks with reporters after arriving at Palm Beach International Airport, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo\/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)<\/p>\n

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The rising tensions concerning Greenland, and threats of a deepening trade war between the U.S. and Europe, caused global investors to shudder<\/a> Tuesday, as stocks on Wall Street slumped. <\/p>\n

Trump prides himself on ratcheting up pressure to try to negotiate through a position of strength. He was leaving Washington Tuesday \u2014 the anniversary of his inauguration \u2014 for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, a venue that offers Trump the chance to defuse tensions as quickly as he stirred them up.<\/p>\n

But European leaders \u2014 digging in and vowing to defend Denmark and its control over semiautonomous Greenland \u2014 may be trying just as hard to meet an extraordinary moment with a show of their fierce resolve.<\/p>\n

That could hurt the chances of Trump finding a quick way to turn around the crisis. Greenland\u2019s leader insisted on respect for its territorial integrity and called international law \u201cnot a game.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018We will work something out\u2019<\/p>\n

Trump made an unusual appearance in the White House briefing room and spoke at length while stocks fell. Asked how far he\u2019d be willing to go to acquire Greenland, Trump said only, \u201cYou\u2019ll find out.\u201d He also mistakenly referred to Greenland as Iceland at one point. <\/p>\n

Still, the president predicted there could be a deal in the making. \u201cI think that we will work something out where NATO is going to be very happy, and where we\u2019re going to be very happy,\u201d he said, without providing specifics. <\/p>\n

Trump said he\u2019d been encouraged that NATO had increased military spending, but he also belittled the alliance, saying other members may not protect Washington\u2019s interests. The president suggested NATO members expect the U.S. to come to their rescue but \u201cI just really do question whether or not they\u2019ll come to ours.\u201d<\/p>\n

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pushed back against Trump\u2019s announcement that, starting in February, a 10% import tax will be imposed on goods from eight European nations that have rallied around Denmark<\/a>. Greenland is a semiautonomous territory of Denmark, a NATO member.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"People<\/p>\n

People walk at the Promenade in front of the Congress Center where the Annual Meeting of the World Economy Forum take place in Davos, Switzerland, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026. (AP Photo\/Markus Schreiber)<\/p>\n

People walk at the Promenade in front of the Congress Center where the Annual Meeting of the World Economy Forum take place in Davos, Switzerland, Monday, Jan. 19, 2026. (AP Photo\/Markus Schreiber)<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe European Union and the United States have agreed to a trade deal last July,\u201d von der Leyen said in Davos. \u201cAnd in politics as in business \u2013 a deal is a deal. And when friends shake hands, it must mean something.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe consider the people of the United States not just our allies, but our friends. And plunging us into a downward spiral would only aid the very adversaries we are both so committed to keeping out of the strategic landscape,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"People<\/p>\n

People protest against Trump\u2019s policy towards Greenland in front of the US consulate in Nuuk, Greenland, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo\/Evgeniy Maloletka)<\/p>\n

People protest against Trump\u2019s policy towards Greenland in front of the US consulate in Nuuk, Greenland, Saturday, Jan. 17, 2026. (AP Photo\/Evgeniy Maloletka)<\/p>\n

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<\/p>\n

\n AP AUDIO: Trump\u2019s Greenland threats spark outrage and defiance from EU, testing longtime NATO alliances\n <\/p>\n

AP correspondent Julie Walker reports on EU leaders pushing back against President Trump\u2019s proposed tariffs over opposition to his Greenland takeover plans.<\/p>\n

She vowed that the EU\u2019s response \u201cwill be unflinching, united and proportional.\u201d<\/p>\n

Taking firmer stances defied the approach that many European leaders have offered since Trump returned to office. It had mostly entailed saying nice things about the president to try to stay in his good graces, while working furiously through other avenues to find compromise. <\/p>\n

Trump says the U.S. needs Greenland to deter possible threats from China and Russia. But his continued insistence in recent weeks that anything short of the U.S. owning Greenland is unacceptable is testing the limits of the softer strategy. <\/p>\n

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said \u201cthe worst may still be ahead of us.\u201d Speaking to parliament, she said: \u201cWe have never sought conflict. We have consistently sought cooperation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018We need to have respect for international law\u2019<\/p>\n

Greenland\u2019s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said at a news conference in the island\u2019s capital, Nuuk, that \u201cwe need to have respect for international law and territorial integrity.\u201d He said those principles should unite Western democratic countries, and expressed gratitude for EU allies\u2019 support.<\/p>\n

\u201cInternational law, it\u2019s not a game,\u201d he said, adding, \u201cWe are willing to cooperate much more, but of course in mutual respect, and if we cannot see that, it will be very difficult to have a good and reliable partnership.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s threats have sparked outrage and a flurry of diplomatic activity<\/a> across Europe, as leaders consider possible countermeasures, including retaliatory tariffs and the unprecedented use of the EU\u2019s anti-coercion instrument.<\/p>\n

Unofficially known as the \u201ctrade bazooka,\u201d the instrument could sanction individuals or institutions found to be putting undue pressure on the EU. The EU has two other major economic tools it could use to pressure Washington: new tariffs or a suspension of the U.S.-EU trade deal. <\/p>\n

Macron warned in Davos that the additional tariffs could force the EU to use its anti-coercion mechanism for the first time against the United States.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"French<\/p>\n

French President Emmanuel Macron is seen during the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. (AP Photo\/Markus Schreiber)<\/p>\n

French President Emmanuel Macron is seen during the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. (AP Photo\/Markus Schreiber)<\/p>\n

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\u201cCan you imagine that?\u201d he said, arguing that allied countries should be focusing instead on bringing peace to Ukraine. \u201cThis is crazy.\u201d <\/p>\n

In general, he said, the mechanism \u201cis a powerful instrument and we should not hesitate to deploy it in today\u2019s tough environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

The U.S. president, in a television interview that aired Tuesday evening, downplayed the retaliatory threat.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnything they do with us, I\u2019ll just meet it,\u201d Trump said on NewsNation\u2019s \u201cKatie Pavlich Tonight.\u201d \u201cAll I have to do is meet it, and it\u2019s going to go ricocheting backward.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, Trump said he believed it was possible an agreement could be worked out, perhaps while he\u2019s at Davos.<\/p>\n

Trump earlier posted a text message from Macron in which the French president suggested a meeting of members of the Group of Seven industrialized democracies in Paris after the Davos gathering. An official close to Macron, who spoke anonymously in line with the French presidency\u2019s customary practices, confirmed the message shared by Trump is genuine. <\/p>\n

In his latest threat of tariffs, Trump indicated that the import taxes would be retaliation for last week\u2019s deployment of symbolic numbers of troops from the European countries<\/a> to Greenland \u2014 though he also suggested he was using the tariffs as leverage to negotiate with Denmark.<\/p>\n

\u2018In the midst of a rupture\u2019 <\/p>\n

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, whose country is a founding NATO member, warned of global fissures beyond Greenland, suggesting it was an \u201cillusion\u201d and \u201cfiction\u201d that there remains a rules-based international order.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet me be direct: We are in the midst of a rupture, not a transition,\u201d Carney said during a speech in Davos. <\/p>\n

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever said at Davos that Europe cannot be a \u201cmiserable slave to Trump.\u201d <\/p>\n

Others encouraged NATO leaders to stand up to Trump. Speaking on the sidelines of Davos, California Gov. Gavin Newsom slammed Europe\u2019s response to Trump\u2019s tariff threats as \u201cpathetic\u201d and \u201cembarrassing,\u201d and urged continental leaders to unite and stand up to the United States.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s time to stand tall and firm, have a backbone,\u201d Newsom, a Democrat, told reporters. <\/p>\n

Greenland\u2019s European backers have also looked at establishing a more permanent military presence to help guarantee security in the Arctic region, a key demand of the United States, Swedish Defense Minister P\u00e5l Jonson said.<\/p>\n

In Moscow, meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov strongly denied any intention by Russia and China to threaten Greenland, while also describing Greenland as a \u201ccolonial gain\u201d for Denmark. <\/p>\n

Trump was asked Tuesday what would happen to his tariff threats related to Greenland if the Supreme Court rules against his ability to impose import tariffs as part of a case<\/a> it is considering. <\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I\u2019ll have to use something else,\u201d Trump said. \u201cWe have other alternatives.\u201d He didn\u2019t respond when asked about using force. <\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Keaten reported from Davos, Switzerland, Burrows reported from Nuuk, Greenland. AP writers Aamer Madhani in Washington, Sylvie Corbet in Paris, Jill Lawless in London and Lorne Cook in Brussels contributed to this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 President Donald Trump\u2019s pledge to provoke a sweeping tariff fight with Europe to get his…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13942,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5],"tags":[5833,184,7329,230,71,73,10630,1162,7319,57,1160,1689,59,74,2378,1158,2374,7601,5924,1888,3595,1161],"class_list":["post-13941","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-greenland","tag-bart-de-wever","tag-donald-trump","tag-economic-policy","tag-emmanuel-macron","tag-europe","tag-european-union","tag-gavin-newsom","tag-general-news","tag-government-policy","tag-greenland","tag-international-agreements","tag-international-trade","tag-mark-carney","tag-nato","tag-north-atlantic-treaty-organization","tag-politics","tag-send-to-apple-news","tag-sergey-lavrov","tag-tariffs-and-global-trade","tag-ursula-von-der-leyen","tag-washington-news","tag-world-news"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13941","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13941"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13941\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13942"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13941"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13941"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13941"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}