Keir Starmer joined European allies warning of a ‘dangerous downward spiral’ in Nato today after Donald Trump threatened a trade war over Greenland.
A joint statement from Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the UK said they stood ‘firmly behind’ the ‘principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity’.
The president has shocked the military alliance by warning that opponents of an American takeover of the Danish territory will be hit with punitive tariffs from February 1.
In a bombshell post on his social media site, Mr Trump said levies will start at 10 per cent – and potentially rise to 25 per cent if they have not capitulated by June.
But in a joint response this afternoon, the European powers said: ‘As members of Nato, we are committed to strengthening Arctic security as a shared transatlantic interest. The pre-coordinated Danish exercise Arctic Endurance conducted with Allies, responds to this necessity. It poses no threat to anyone.
‘We stand in full solidarity with the Kingdom of Denmark and the people of Greenland. Building on the process begun last week, we stand ready to engage in a dialogue based on the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity that we stand firmly behind.
‘Tariff threats undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral. We will continue to stand united and coordinated in our response. We are committed to upholding our sovereignty.’
Mr Trump’s intervention has sparked fresh fears he is intent on ripping apart the Western pact that has maintained world peace for the past eight decades.
MPs also joined the backlash, with calls for the mooted trip by King Charles to Washington in the Spring to be cancelled. ‘The civilised world can deal with Trump no longer. He is a gangster pirate,’ senior Tory Simon Hoare said.
Running the gauntlet of broadcast studios for the government this morning, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy stressed that support for Greenland’s sovereignty was ‘non-negotiable’.
‘We believe it is wrong, we believe it is deeply unhelpful,’ she told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg of Mr Trump’s tariff threat.
But pressed on the issue of the state visit she merely referred to the ‘depth’ of the Transatlantic relationship.
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is privately ramping up his focus on another target in the Western Hemisphere, increasingly complaining to aides in recent weeks about Canada’s vulnerability to U.S. adversaries in the Arctic, according to two U.S. officials, a senior administration official and three former senior U.S. officials familiar with the discussions.
As Trump’s advisers work toward his goal of acquiring Greenland, the president has privately grown more exercised about what he sees as Canada’s similar inability to defend its borders against any encroachment from Russia or China, specifically arguing Canada needs to spend more on defense, the officials said. They said his push has accelerated internal discussions about a broader Arctic strategy and potentially reaching an agreement with Canada this year to fortify its northern border.