Trump-Greenland newest: Relations with US have suffered a ‘big blow’, EU international coverage chief says
EU leaders say relations with the United States have “taken a big blow” after a turbulent week marked by Donald Trump’s threats over Greenland.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said ties with Washington were shaken, but added that Europe was “not willing to junk 80 years of good relations”.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said EU unity and engagement with the US in a “firm but non-escalatory manner” had helped defuse tensions.
Meanwhile, the US president accused European soldiers of avoiding the front lines during the war in Afghanistan.
Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte had confronted Trump on his claims that Nato wouldn’t “be there for us if we gave them a call”.
“Let me tell you, they will – and they did in Afghanistan,” Rutte insisted at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday.
Trump shrugged off the comments in an interview with Fox, saying: “We’ve never needed them. They’ll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan… and they did, they stayed a little back, a little off the front lines.”
Opinion: Without the US, Nato must be rebalanced
President Trump thrives on division so Nato must do three things to survive and thrive, writes General Sir Richard Shirreff, former Nato deputy supreme allied commander Europe:
Europe forced Trump climbdown, claims Macron
French president Emmanuel Macron on Thursday said European pressure forced US president Donald Trump to back down from his threats to take control of Greenland.
“Europe can make itself be respected, and that’s a very good thing,” Mr Macron told reporters as he arrived in Brussels for an emergency summit.
“When we use the tools that we have at our disposal we get respect and that’s what happened this week.”
He wrote on social media: “When Europe reacts in a united way, using the instruments at its disposal while it is threatened, it earns respect.”
Starmer vows to talk to Denmark on greater Arctic security
Sir Keir Starmer says he will discuss with Denmark’s prime minister how to “take the vital steps” towards strengthened security in the Arctic.
The Prime Minister and his Danish counterpart Mette Frederiksen met at Chequers, a day after the US president dropped tariff threats against European nations.
Ms Frederiksen thanked him for the UK’s support during “quite a difficult time” for the country.
Sir Keir said: “In terms of recent developments and the withdrawal of the threat of tariffs, I see that as a reflection of pragmatism, common sense and sticking to our values and our principles.
“The hard yards now – finding a better way forward on the issue that we all agree on, which is security in the Arctic – is the next chapter here, and I look forward to discussing with you how we take the vital steps down that path.”
Why US has right to build military bases in Greenland
A 1951 agreement between Washington and Copenhagen established the US’s right to construct military bases in Greenland and move around freely in Greenlandic territory. This is still the case as long as Denmark and Greenland are informed of its actions.
Washington has a base at Pituffik in northern Greenland.
Marc Jacobsen, a professor at the Royal Danish Defence College, said: “It is important to clarify that the US had 17 bases during the Cold War and much greater activity. So that is already possible now under the current agreement.”
But diplomats told Reuters EU leaders will rethink relations with the US as the Greenland episode had badly shaken confidence in the transatlantic relationship. Governments remain wary of another change of mind by Trump, who is increasingly seen as a bully Europe will have to stand up to, they said.
Watch: Trump dodges Greenland deal questions
Trump dodges questions on Greenland ‘deal’
Opinion: The madness isn’t over yet
Trump whims are turning into demands very quickly these days, writes Anne McElvoy:
Trump believes Denmark ‘likes’ proposed Greenland deal
White House correspondent Andrew Feinberg reports:
Donald Trump believes Denmark “likes” the Greenland framework deal that has been proposed.
When asked if Denmark was on board with his plans, the US president said: “I think everyone likes it. I’ll let you know in about two weeks.”
US ‘can do anything we want’, says Trump after negotiations over Greenland deal
White House correspondent Andrew Feinberg reports:
Donald Trump has said that the US “can do anything we want” after negotiations over the Greenland framework deal.
Speaking of the potential deal, the US president told reporters: “It was really a negotiation, but it’s infinity. The time limit is infinity, meaning there is no time limit. It’s forever. You know, you’re about 99 years, 50 years. It’s forever. That was discussed.
“We can do anything we want, we can do military, we can do anything we want, and it’s being negotiated, and let’s see what happens. I think it’ll be good.”
Greenland sovereignty non-negotiable, says leader
Leaders of Denmark and Greenland have insisted that the island’s sovereignty is non-negotiable after US president Donald Trump said he had agreed on a framework with Nato granting the US “total access” to the island.
Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen voiced guarded relief at Trump’s scrapping of his tariffs plan, but he said he knew no concrete details of the agreement Trump cited.
“I don’t know what there is in the agreement, or the deal about my country,” he told reporters.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said security in the Arctic was a matter for all of Nato, and it was “good and natural” that it be discussed between the US president and Nato chief Mark Rutte.
She wrote that “we cannot negotiate on our sovereignty” and added: “I have been informed that this has not been the case.”
Source: independent.co.uk
