US must respect Denmark's sovereignty over Greenland: EU

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said on Monday that the United States must respect the sovereignty of Greenland and Denmark, as it is vital for transatlantic relations.

Von der Leyen made the remarks in a social media post after meeting a bipartisan U.S. congressional delegation on the sidelines of the 2026 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.

She said the European Union (EU) remains ready to work with the United States, NATO and other allies, in close cooperation with Denmark, to advance shared security interests.

Von der Leyen also said that transatlantic trade and investment are a major asset for both the EU and U.S. economies, and tariffs run counter to these shared interests.

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas also weighed in after talks with Denmark's defense minister and Greenland's foreign minister. Writing on social media, she said Europe has no intention to pick a fight, but will stand firm and has a slate of tools to safeguard its interests.

Kallas also said that tariff threats are not a solution, and sovereignty is not for trade.

An EU spokesperson said leaders of member states would hold an emergency summit in Brussels on Thursday to discuss U.S. tariffs against European countries opposing its claims over Greenland, and to consider possible countermeasures.

France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told the French parliament on Monday that Greenland is European territory, neither for sale nor to be seized, responding to the recent remarks from the United States that it must obtain Greenland.

US must respect Denmark's sovereignty over Greenland: EU

The European Parliament on Wednesday decided to put on hold approval of the trade deal between the European Union (EU) and the United States following U.S. threats of tariffs linked to Greenland.

Bernd Lange, chair of the European Parliament's International Trade Committee, said in a statement that the Parliament would suspend work on two legislative proposals related to the deal given the continued and escalating threats, including tariff threats, against Greenland and Denmark.

Under the EU-U.S. trade deal hammered out last July, the European Union would suspend tariffs on all U.S. industrial products and introduce tariff-rate quotas for a wide range of U.S. agri-food products entering the EU market. In return, the United States would apply a 15-percent import tariff on most EU goods. The European Commission subsequently published two legislative proposals aimed at implementing certain tariff aspects of the agreement.

European Parliament puts EU-US trade deal on hold over Greenland tariff threats