Europe’s leaders find a way to speak with one voice against Trump
LONDON (AP) — No more fawning praise. No more polite workarounds and old-school diplomacy. And nobody’s looking for Donald Trump “daddy” Now.
European leaders We worked for a year to understand how to deal with a problem emboldened American president In his second term, he came close to saying “no,” or something diplomatically similar, to his disregard for international law and claims to his own territory. Trump’s promise to seize Greenland Punish any country that resistsIt looks like a crucible.
It was acknowledged that “red lines” had been crossed this year when Trump reintroduced his demand that the United States should “absolutely” govern Greenland, a semi-autonomous region that is part of NATO ally Denmark. This situation pushed even the most mild-mannered diplomats to issue harsh warnings against Trump, whom they flattered. withroyal treatment And flattering praise.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said, “Britain will not give up its support for Greenland’s sovereignty.” Many of the continent’s leaders have said, “We will not be blackmailed into Europe” over Greenland.
“Threats have no place among allies,” Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said.
Tough diplomatic talk over last week’s showdown in Davos, Switzerland, wasn’t the only factor weighing on Trump. US congressional elections approaching in November crashing stock market And fading approval ratings. European leaders aren’t the first to stand in Trump’s way during his second term, either — see. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.
But the dramatic shift among Europe’s elites from “pacifying” Trump to challenging him offers clues to ongoing efforts among some countries on how to say “no” to a president who hates to hear it and is known to retaliate.
“We want a piece of ice to protect the world, but they won’t give it to us,” Trump told his audience at the World Economic Forum. “You can say yes and we will be very grateful. Or you can say no and we will remember.”
Lesson 1: Speak as one
In recent days, Europe has rejected the Greenland request and sided with Trump many times. joins new Peace Council and even down to what Canada’s Mark Carney calls the “fiction” that the alliance works to the benefit of any one country rather than the most powerful. The moment signaled the unity among European leaders that they have been trying to achieve for a year.
“When Europe is not divided, when we stand together and are clear and strong in our willingness to stand up for ourselves, then results will emerge,” said Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen. “I think we learned something.”
Federiksen himself gave the example of the learning curve. A year ago, he and other leaders were on their heels, mostly responding to the Trump administration. found it necessary Tell reporters in February 2025After saying Denmark was “not a good ally,” Vice President J.D. Vance said, “We are not a bad ally.”
Trump is transactional. He told The New York Times this month that he had little need for diplomacy and “no need for international law.” Therein lay the disconnect between the typically collaborative European leaders and the Republican president, who told the White House that he wanted the United States to take over Greenland, Panama and maybe even Canada.
“During Trump’s first term, Europe didn’t know what to expect and tried to deal with him using old rules of diplomacy with the expectation that if they continued to talk to him in a measured way, he would change his behavior and move to the club,” said Mark Shanahan, associate professor of political engagement at the University of Surrey.
“It’s very difficult for other leaders who are dealing with the intricacies of a rules-based system and diplomatic conversation with each other,” Shanahan said. “It’s very difficult for them to change.”
Five months after Trump took office last year, with the Greenland threat in the air, European leaders had had enough of the Trump administration. meeting of NATO countries in the Netherlands. NATO members agreed to contribute more and widely credited Trump with pushing them to modernize.
General Secretary Mark Rutte, known as the leader of the coalition “Trump whisperer” He compared the president’s role in silencing the Iran-Israel war to a “dad” intervening in a schoolyard fight.
Lesson 2: Consider saying no and make choices accordingly
Traditional diplomacy is available to preserve opportunities for working together. This usually means avoiding saying a flat “no” if possible. But Trump’s Greenland gambit was such a sharp threat from one NATO member to another that Greenland’s prime minister actually made the remark.
Jens-Frederik Nielsen said in a statement shortly after Trump’s statements on January 5, “Enough.” “No more pressure, no more clues, no more fantasies of annexation.”
This played a role in setting the tone. The Danish leader said that this occupation of Greenland Marking the end of NATO and urged alliance members to take the threat seriously.
They did so by issuing statement after statement rejecting the renewed threat. Trump responded at his golf course in Florida last weekend by threatening to impose a 10% import tariff within a month on goods from eight European countries (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Finland). He wrote that the rate will rise to 25% on June 1 if no agreement is made by the United States on the “Complete and Complete Acquisition of Greenland.”
Lesson 3: Reject Trump’s great power paradigm
Trump’s belligerent remarks lit a fire among leaders arriving in Davos. But they also seemed aware that Trump’s world left him vulnerable.
Domestically, “Trump was in a pretty weak position because he has a lot of other problems looming,” including the upcoming U.S. Supreme Court decision. on his tariffs and a reaction Immigration raids in Minnesotasaid Duncan Snidal, professor emeritus of international relations at the University of Oxford and the University of Chicago.
Canada’s Carney said no, reframing the question not about Greenland but as whether it was time for European countries to band together against a “tyrant,” and the answer was yes.
Without naming the United States or Trump, Carney spoke clearly: Europe must reject great power “oppression” and “exploitation,” he said. He said it was time to accept that a “rupture” had occurred in the alliance, not a transition.
Although, as Snidel points out, the break is not said to be very recent may be difficult to repair It will be in the interests of the United States and Europe to do so under adjusted rules in the future, beyond Trump’s presidency. “It’s a very good deal for all of them not to do this,” Snidel said.
Lesson 4: Be careful
Trump had begun to backtrack before retiring from the podium in Davos.
HE rescinded his threat Using “force” to capture Greenland. Soon he completely reversed itself, announced the “framework” of a deal that would make the threat of tariffs unnecessary.
Trump told Fox Business that “we will have full access to Greenland” under the “framework” without explaining what that might mean.
Frederiksen pressed the warning button again. “We cannot negotiate over our sovereignty,” he said in the statement.
In other words: “No.”
