European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday promised an “unwavering” response to Donald Trump’s threats over Greenland, as the US president said he was ready to hold a meeting in Davos on the Arctic island.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in a Swiss ski resort, von der Leyen warned that Trump risked sending US relations with the European Union into a “downward spiral” over the autonomous Danish territory.
Trump, who will address the annual gathering of global elites on Wednesday, tested the transatlantic alliance with his demand to take over Greenland.
Europe is considering countermeasures after the US president threatened to impose tariffs on eight European countries over the standoff in Greenland – although Washington said any retaliatory charges would be “unwise”.
Read also | Trump shares an AI-generated map showing Greenland, Canada on US territory
“The proposed additional tariffs are a mistake, especially among long-time allies,” von der Leyen told a gathering of world business and political leaders.
“Plunging us into a downward spiral would only help the very adversaries we are both so determined to keep out of the strategic landscape. So our response will be unwavering, unified and proportionate,” she said.
Trump continued his campaign for Greenland on his Truth Social platform, posting a fake photo of himself hoisting the flag into the rocky and icy landscape next to the words “GREENLAND – US TERRITORY EST. 2026”.
He later wrote that he had a “very good” conversation with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte regarding mineral-rich Greenland.
Read also | Trump’s move to take over Greenland backfires as France mounts wild comeback
“I have agreed to a meeting of the various parties in Davos, Switzerland,” he said late on Monday.
The US president said he didn’t think European leaders would “push too hard” on his bid to buy the huge island, telling reporters on Monday: “They can’t protect it.”
Trump has used the argument that he wants to protect Greenland from perceived Russian and Chinese threats as a key justification for taking over the strategically located territory, although analysts suggest Beijing is a minor player in the region.
EU leaders will hold an extraordinary summit on Greenland on Thursday in Brussels.
French President Emmanuel Macron, whose relations with Trump have reached a new low, will also speak at the forum on Tuesday.
The US leader has threatened a 200 percent tariff on French wine and champagne over France’s intention to decline an invitation to his “Board of Peace.”
Analysts have compared the international conflict resolution committee — which has a $1 billion per-seat fee — to a paid version of the UN Security Council.
Trump confirmed on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin was among various world leaders invited to join, telling Macron reporters that “nobody wants him” because he is “going to be out of office soon.”
While Macron will leave on Tuesday without seeing Trump in Davos, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he would try to meet the US president at the forum on Wednesday.
Macron instead sent a message to Trump to propose Thursday’s G7 summit in Paris on Greenland, as well as ways to end Russia’s war with Ukraine, with Copenhagen, Moscow and Kiev taking part on the sidelines.
The Kremlin said Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev planned to meet members of the US delegation in Davos – the first to head to the mountain resort since the Russians were barred from the gathering following Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
The United States has sent an unusually large delegation to Davos in a sign that it wants to make its presence felt at the summit by global economic and political leaders.
– China criticizes “law of the jungle” –
Other prominent foreign leaders who spoke at the WEF on Tuesday included China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng, whose country is embroiled in a trade war with Trump.
“A select few countries should not have self-interested privileges and the world cannot return to the law of the jungle where the strong prey on the weak,” he said, without naming any country.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who has sought to reduce his country’s reliance on the United States in its own tariff dispute with Trump, will also speak in Davos later on Tuesday.
As relations with the US fray, Carney turned the page on years of diplomatic tensions with China during a visit to Beijing last week, securing a tentative trade deal to cut tariffs.
Other focal points on the WEF agenda include the crisis in Venezuela, Gaza, Ukraine and Iran.
UN chief Antonio Guterres, a Davos regular, canceled his attendance after coming down with a “bad cold”, his office said.
Disclaimer: This story was published from the agency’s news feed without editing the text. Only the title was changed.
