BRUSSELS — European leaders have launched a coordinated diplomatic offensive against U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threats targeting eight European nations, escalating tensions over his renewed pursuit of acquiring Greenland. The confrontation has triggered emergency meetings and warnings of transatlantic relationship damage.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, despite maintaining positive relations with Trump, explicitly cautioned the American administration against economic retaliation. During her official visit to Seoul, Meloni revealed she personally conveyed to Trump that imposing new sanctions would constitute a significant miscalculation, while simultaneously attributing the dispute to communication failures between the allies.
The controversy stems from Trump’s intensified campaign to acquire the autonomous Danish territory since returning to office, with recent weeks witnessing heightened claims that have destabilized NATO partnerships. On Saturday, the president threatened punitive 10% tariffs commencing February 1 on imports from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Netherlands, and Finland—potentially rising to 25% by June absent Greenland’s transfer agreement.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer plans direct discussions with Trump regarding what UK Culture Minister Lisa Nandy termed “deeply unhelpful and counterproductive” measures. Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron advocated deploying the EU’s unprecedented trade defense mechanism—the so-called ‘bazooka’ instrument designed to counteract coercive practices through import restrictions.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa jointly warned that such tariffs would precipitate a dangerous downward spiral in transatlantic cooperation. Their statement preceded an emergency assembly of EU ambassadors in Brussels to formulate a coordinated response.
Civil society has mobilized against potential annexation, with thousands protesting in Nuuk, Copenhagen, and other Danish cities. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen announced imminent diplomatic visits to NATO partners Norway, Britain, and Sweden to reinforce Arctic security consensus.
Dutch Foreign Minister David van Weel condemned Trump’s approach as “inexplicable blackmail,” while French Agricultural Minister Annie Genevard noted reciprocal economic damage would affect American farmers and industrialists. The EU previously secured a July agreement limiting most exports to 15% U.S. levies, now jeopardized by the Greenland dispute.