EU lawmakers warn U.S. trade deal at risk after Trump tariff threat
European Union lawmakers warned that approval of the EU’s trade agreement with the United States could be at risk following President Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on Denmark and other European countries over Greenland, according to a senior EU official.
Manfred Weber, president of the European People’s Party (EPP), said approval of the EU–U.S. trade deal is no longer possible under the current circumstances, despite the EPP’s general support for the agreement.
Weber said the EPP favors the EU–U.S. trade deal in principle but that Trump’s threats related to Greenland make approval untenable at this stage. He said zero-percent tariffs on U.S. products should be put on hold.
The EPP is the largest political group in the European Parliament, and if it joins left-leaning parties, lawmakers could have enough votes to delay or block ratification, according to Bloomberg.
Trump said earlier on Saturday that the United States would impose a 10% tariff on goods from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland starting Feb. 1, with the rate increasing to 25% on June 1, unless a deal is reached for what he described as the “complete and total purchase of Greenland.”
Trump framed the move as necessary for U.S. and global security, citing threats in the Arctic from China and Russia.
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said the president’s statement came as a surprise and said that Danish officials had held what he described as a constructive meeting earlier in the week with Vice President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Rasmussen said Denmark’s increased military presence in Greenland is intended to enhance Arctic security and is being carried out transparently with NATO allies and in coordination with the European Commission.
French President Emmanuel Macron said France is committed to national sovereignty and rejected what he described as intimidation through tariff threats. “No intimidation or threat will influence us—neither in Ukraine, nor in Greenland, nor anywhere else in the world when we are confronted with such situations,” he added.
Macron added that Europeans would respond in a united and coordinated manner if the tariffs are confirmed.
The post EU lawmakers warn U.S. trade deal at risk after Trump tariff threat appeared first on BNO News.
Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
