European leaders issued a blistering joint response to President Donald Trump’s threat to impose 10% tariffs on eight NATO allies over their opposition to a U.S. purchase of Greenland. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen declared that “Europe won’t be blackmailed,” emphasizing that the Arctic territory is not for sale. The targeted nations, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the UK, warned in a unified statement that the move risks a “dangerous downward spiral” for the transatlantic alliance.
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The diplomatic firestorm erupted after Trump announced on Truth Social that the tariffs would begin on February 1, rising to 25% by June if a “deal” for the island is not reached. Trump justified the penalties by accusing the allies of playing a “dangerous game” after they sent troops to Greenland for the “Arctic Endurance” security exercise. In response, French President Emmanuel Macron has urged the European Union to activate its Anti-Coercion Instrument, a never-before-used “trade bazooka” that could freeze U.S. access to European public contracts and investments.
🇬🇧 Blackmail Over Greenland
▫‘It’s time to hand over Greenland,’ Trump tells Europe as Starmer slams tariff threat
▫Isabel Coles & @itsjamestapper
▫https://t.co/zdc0LFVXHY#frontpagestoday #UK @ObserverUK pic.twitter.com/EcX4Mdgln4— 𝙵𝚛𝚘𝚗𝚝 𝙿𝚊𝚐𝚎𝚜 𝚃𝚘𝚍𝚊𝚢 📰 (@ukpapers) January 18, 2026
As thousands of protesters took to the streets in Nuuk and Copenhagen, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte confirmed he has spoken with Trump to de-escalate the crisis before the World Economic Forum in Davos later this week. While Italian PM Giorgia Meloni called the tariffs a “mistake,” the UK has labeled the threat “completely wrong” and non-negotiable. The standoff marks the most severe rift in NATO since its founding, with EU diplomats now holding emergency sessions in Brussels to coordinate a continent-wide retaliation.
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