This very day, a informal Coalition of the Committed, predominantly consisting of EU heads of state, convened in Paris with envoys of President Trump, hoping to achieve more advances on a durable settlement for the embattled nation.
With President Volodymyr Zelensky insisting that a roadmap to conclude the war with Russia is "90% of the way there", not a single person in that room desired to risk keeping the Washington onboard.
Yet, there was an colossal unspoken issue in that impressive and sparkling Paris meeting, and the underlying atmosphere was exceptionally tense.
Consider the events of the last few days: the US administration's divisive intervention in Venezuela and the US president's declaration shortly thereafter, that "it is essential to have Greenland from the viewpoint of defense".
This massive island is the world's greatest island – it's six times the dimensions of Germany. It lies in the far north but is an self-governing region of the Kingdom of Denmark.
At the summit, Mette Frederiksen, Denmark's Prime Minister, was positioned facing two key personalities acting for Trump: special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's adviser Jared Kushner.
She was under pressure from European allies not to antagonising the US over the Arctic question, for fear that that undermines US backing for Ukraine.
EU heads of state would have far preferred to keep Greenland and the discussions on Ukraine distinct. But with the tensions rising from the White House and Denmark, leaders of leading EU countries at the Paris meeting released a communiqué stating: "The island is part of NATO. Security in the North must therefore be attained jointly, in partnership with alliance members such as the United States".
"The decision is for Copenhagen and Greenland, and them alone, to rule on affairs concerning Denmark and its autonomous territory," the declaration added.
The communique was greeted by the island's leader, Jens Frederik Nielsen, but critics argue it was tardy to be formulated and, owing to the small group of signatories to the statement, it failed to demonstrate a European Union aligned in objective.
"Had there been a unified declaration from all 27 European Union countries, in addition to NATO ally the UK, in backing of Danish sovereignty, that would have delivered a powerful message to the US," stated a European defense expert.
Reflect on the contradiction at hand at the France meeting. Multiple EU government and other officials, such as NATO and the European Union, are attempting to engage the Trump administration in protecting the future independence of a continental state (Ukraine) against the hostile land claims of an outside force (Moscow), immediately after the US has swooped into sovereign Venezuela by armed intervention, taking its president into custody, while also continuing to publicly undermining the territorial integrity of a further continental ally (the Kingdom of Denmark).
To compound the situation – Denmark and the US are both participants of the defensive pact the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. They are, as stated by Danish officials, exceptionally close allies. Previously, they were considered so.
The issue is, were Trump to make good on his desire to bring Greenland under US control, would it constitute not just an existential threat to NATO but also a significant crisis for the EU?
This is far from the first instance President Trump has expressed his intention to dominate the Arctic island. He's floated the idea of acquiring it in the past. He's also left open the possibility of taking it by force.
He insisted that the landmass is "so strategic right now, it is patrolled by Russian and Chinese vessels all over the place. It is imperative to have Greenland from the perspective of defense and Copenhagen is incapable to provide security".
Denmark contests that claim. It recently pledged to allocate $4bn in the island's defense encompassing boats, drones and aircraft.
Under a mutual pact, the US operates a strategic outpost presently on Greenland – set up at the onset of the East-West standoff. It has scaled down the figure of troops there from about 10,000 during the height of Cold War operations to about 200 and the US has frequently been criticized of taking its eye off the northern theater, up to this point.
Copenhagen has suggested it is willing to talk about a expanded US role on the island and further cooperation but confronted by the US President's assertion of unilateral action, Frederiksen said on Monday that Trump's ambition to control Greenland should be treated with gravity.
Following the Washington's moves in Venezuela this weekend, her fellow leaders in Europe are doing just that.
"The current crisis has just emphasized – once again – Europe's basic shortcoming {
Elara is a seasoned writer and digital storyteller with a passion for exploring diverse literary genres and empowering others through words.
