United States President Donald Trump has brushed aside French President Emmanuel Macron's call for an emergency G7 meeting amid escalating tensions over Washington, DC's push to acquire Greenland, while Europe has warned of retaliatory trade action against US tariff threats.
Speaking to reporters at the completion of his first year of a second term, Trump said he would not attend the proposed G7 meeting, casting doubt on Macron's political future.
"No, I wouldn't do that… Because Emmanuel is not going to be there very long and there's no longevity there," he said.
What is EU's trade bazooka
- The EU's anti-coercion instrument, informally called the 'trade bazooka', is designed to counter economic pressure from third countries.
- It allows the EU to impose sanctions, retaliatory tariffs, or suspend parts of trade deals against those coercing the bloc.
- Macron warned US tariff threats could trigger its first-ever use.
Trump's remarks came after he posted on Truth Social a screenshot of a private message from Macron inviting him to Paris for a G7 meeting after the World Economic Forum in Davos.
In the message, Macron said France and the US were aligned on Syria and Iran but expressed confusion over Trump's stance on Greenland, proposing talks with Ukraine, Denmark, Syria and Russia on the sidelines.
When asked how far he was willing to go to acquire Greenland, Trump replied, "You will find out."
Trump plans to impose 10% tariffs on 8 European nations
Trump also lashed out at North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), alleging it treats the US 'unfairly' despite Washington, DC spending heavily on the alliance.
"I know we'll come to their rescue, but I really do question whether or not they'll come to ours," he said.
Earlier, at the World Economic Forum, Macron sharply criticised US trade practices, warning that Washington, DC's tariff threats 'openly aim to weaken and subordinate Europe' and are being used as leverage against territorial sovereignty.
He described such policies as 'fundamentally unacceptable' and warned of growing global instability and a shift 'towards autocracy rather than democracy'.
Tensions have risen further after Trump pledged sweeping new tariffs on Europe linked to Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of Denmark.
From February, the US plans to impose a 10 per cent import tax on goods from eight European countries backing Denmark, a move that has alarmed America’s allies and raised fears of a rupture within NATO.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the planned tariffs a 'mistake' and questioned Trump's trustworthiness.
"A deal is a deal. And when friends shake hands, it must mean something," she said, referring to the EU-US trade agreement reached last July. She warned that the EU's response would be 'unflinching, united and proportional'.
Macron went further, saying the EU could retaliate by deploying one of its most powerful economic tools, colloquially known as the 'trade bazooka'.
The tougher European stance marks a shift from earlier efforts by some leaders to keep Trump on side, and underscores growing concern that a trade war over Greenland could destabilise long-standing transatlantic ties.
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