EU leaders convened an emergency summit in Brussels after President Trump suggested the U.S. might try to "acquire" Greenland and warned of tariffs. Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa and other officials said the comments test Europe’s security, sovereignty and prosperity and have eroded trust. The EU warned that tariffs would damage transatlantic ties and the trade framework, and announced plans for major investment in Greenland and a new Arctic security strategy with partners.
EU Leaders Hold Emergency Summit After Trump’s Greenland Remarks; Warn of Risks to Security and Trade
FILE - President Donald Trump and Norway's Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store shake hands during the group photo at the Gaza International Peace Summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, Oct.13 2025. (Yoan Valat, Pool photo via AP, File)(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
BRUSSELS — European leaders met in an emergency summit in Brussels after U.S. President Donald Trump’s public comments about “acquiring” Greenland and threatening tariffs on countries that oppose the move, developments officials say have strained transatlantic relations.
Portugal’s Prime Minister António Costa — speaking to lawmakers and fellow EU officials — warned that the episode tests Europe’s security, core principles and prosperity. “All three of these dimensions are being tested in the current moment of transatlantic relations,” he said.
Greenland Minister for Foreign Affairs and Research Vivian Motzfeldt, center right, hugs a woman after arriving at the airport in Nuuk, Greenland, Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Costa and other EU officials said Trump’s insistence that the mineral-rich Arctic island might be taken for purported security reasons has eroded trust among NATO allies and Canada. The dispute heightened after Denmark dispatched a military “reconnaissance” force to Greenland, a semiautonomous Danish territory; a small number of troops from other European countries joined that deployment, and Copenhagen is weighing a longer-term presence.
“Only Denmark and Greenland can decide their future,” Costa told lawmakers in Strasbourg, stressing respect for international law, territorial integrity and national sovereignty.
EU leaders warned that threats of tariffs would undermine transatlantic relations and could jeopardize the EU‑US trade framework negotiated last year. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc is “at a crossroads” and vowed the EU is prepared to act with “unity, urgency and determination” if coercive measures are imposed.
An Aurora Borealis is seen in the sky above Nuuk, Greenland, on Tuesday, Jan. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)(ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Von der Leyen announced plans for a significant European investment push in Greenland to strengthen its economy and infrastructure, and for a new European security strategy focused on the Arctic. She said security around Greenland should be bolstered in partnership with countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Norway and Iceland.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk urged firmness on social media, arguing that “appeasement is always a sign of weakness” and calling for greater European assertiveness.
EU officials stressed readiness to defend member states, citizens and companies against any form of coercion, saying the bloc has the tools to respond. The summit aimed to coordinate diplomatic, economic and security responses while reaffirming that any change to Greenland’s status must be decided by Denmark and Greenland themselves.
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