After threats against Greenland and Denmark, the European Union Legislative body has halted the approval and implementation of the trade deal it reached last summer with US President Donald Trump.
The Chairman of the European Parliament’s international trade committee, Bernd Lange on Wednesday said in a statement that given the escalating and continued threats, including tariffs, against Denmark and Greenland, they are left with no choice but to suspend the work on the deal.
He further added that until the US decides to re-engage on path of cooperation rather than confrontation no steps to advance the agreement will be taken.
On X formerly twitter Lange emphasised that Europe’s territorial integrity is at stake. In the current scenario doing business as usual is impossible with the US.
The suspension of the deal comes after Trump announced on Saturday that the European countries which will be resisting the US’s control of Greenland will have tariffs imposed on them.
The transatlantic trade relationship between EU and US is very important for both of the countries. In 2024, it was valued at $1.5 trillion annually in goods and services. The US imports $600 billion in EU goods and the EU purchases more than $360 billion in American.
The EU leaders are scheduled to meet on Thursday and will be coordinating their response. The response could be retaliatory tariffs of worth $110 billion. The tariffs will be targeting US exports that will range from Boeing Airplanes, soybeans and Kentucky bourbon.
Another measure is also being considered by Europe which is the deployment of EU’s “Anti-Coercion Instrument.” This will allow Europe to impose restrictions on US services and goods in Europe.
The tensions between Europe and US are at an all-time high. How these allies will be dealing with these tensions is a mystery. However, if issues are not resolved it could lead to the end of NATO.
Also read: Trump warns of tariffs for countries blocking Greenland takeover
