The European Union wants to impose tariffs on €93 billion worth of American goods or other restrictions against US businesses in response to President Donald Trumpʼs comments on tariffs on Greenland.
This is reported by the Financial Times, citing sources.
The EUʼs goal, sources said, is to find a compromise and avoid a deep split in the Western military alliance that could threaten European security. Thatʼs why tariffs and other restrictions are being seen as a tool of pressure ahead of key talks with Trump in Davos.
“We have clear tools to respond if this continues. Trump is using purely mafia methods,” one of the sources said. At the same time, he said, the EU is trying to publicly call for calm and give the American president a chance to back down.
France has called for the Anti-Coercion Instrument to be applied. Paris and Berlin are coordinating a common position — the finance ministers of the two countries are to meet in Berlin before negotiations with colleagues from other EU states in Brussels.
In addition, the largest political forces in the European Parliament have decided to postpone a vote on reducing tariffs on American goods as part of a trade deal concluded last year. This is seen as the first step towards a possible escalation.
Donald Trump plans to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday and Thursday. He is expected to hold closed-door talks with European leaders, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and participate in a discussion on support for Ukraine.
A meeting of Western national security advisers in Davos, originally planned to focus on Ukraine and peace talks with Russia, has been urgently reformatted. A significant portion of the time will now be devoted to discussing the crisis surrounding Greenland.
- Trump said on January 17 that the United States would impose 10% tariffs on Denmark, the United Kingdom, Norway, France, Germany, Finland, and the Netherlands starting February 1 if these countries oppose the idea of transferring Greenland to US. control. Trump has long called the island critical to American security and has not ruled out a forceful scenario.
- Earlier, several European countries had sent small military contingents to Greenland at Denmarkʼs request. This further strained relations between Washington and its European allies. However, the day after the tariffs were declared, Germany abandoned the military exercises.
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