BRUSSELS, Jan 18 (KUNA) -- Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom voiced on Sunday their full solidarity with Denmark and the people of Greenland.
In a joint statement, the countries concerned expressed their readiness to engage in dialogue based on the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity, stressing their commitment, stemming from their membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), to strengthening Arctic security as a shared interest on both sides of the Atlantic.
The countries considered that the threats announced by US President Donald Trump to impose tariffs undermine transatlantic relations and portend a dangerous spiral of deterioration, as they put it. They emphasized that they would stand "shoulder to shoulder", reaffirming their commitment to "preserving our sovereignty".
For his part, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said in a post on X that he had held a call with US President Donald Trump regarding the security situation in Greenland and the Arctic, affirming continued joint work on the matter and expressing his anticipation of meeting the US president in Davos later this week.
US President Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire to seize Greenland since returning to the White House for a second presidential term, asserting that Greenland coming under US sovereignty would serve what he described as the United Statesآ’ "national security".
In response, Denmark and a number of its European NATO allies recently sent limited numbers of military personnel to Greenland to take part in military exercises, to which the United States was also invited.
On Saturday, Trump announced the imposition of tariffs on eight European countries namely Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Finland at a rate of 10 percent on all products they export to the United States "until an agreement is reached to purchase Greenland in full," as he put it.
The European Union (EU) warned on Saturday that resorting to imposing tariffs "would undermine transatlantic relations and open the door to a dangerous escalation spiral," stressing that Europe "will remain united, coordinated, and committed to protecting its sovereignty and defending the rules-based international order". (end) arn.mt