Senior members of the European Parliament are mounting a campaign to halt ratification of the EU-US trade agreement, citing U.S. President Donald Trump’s renewed threats to acquire or seize Greenland. The EU leaders are considering it as a direct challenge to transatlantic relations and international norms.
The move could jeopardise the deal aimed at averting a tariff war, potentially disrupting billions in cross-Atlantic trade amid already strained ties. European Parliament Member Bernd Lange, a German Social Democrat who chairs the Parliament’s trade committee, has launched a campaign to freeze the deal, which is scheduled to be ratified by the parliament in February this year.
Lange told reporters that Trump’s territorial claims have “changed the whole situation,” prompting a reassessment of the agreement struck between European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Trump. “We will make an assessment and have a discussion in my committee at the end of January,” Lange said, ahead of the planned February vote on lifting EU tariffs on imports from USA.
Danish MEP Per Clausen of The Left group is also leading the campaign by circulating a letter urging Parliament President Roberta Metsola and political leaders to “freeze” the deal indefinitely while U.S. threats persist. The letter, which has a signature deadline of next Tuesday, argues that approving the pact now would be seen as “rewarding” Trump’s actions and could “add fuel to the fire.” Clausen emphasized the threats’ impact on Denmark, which administers Greenland as an autonomous territory.
Support for the freeze spans ideological lines. Greens MEP Anna Cavazzini stated, “I cannot imagine that in the current situation MEPs would vote for any trade measures benefiting the U.S.” Renew Europe’s Karin Karlsbro added that EU support for the deal cannot be “taken for granted” without U.S. guarantees on tariffs and security threats. Socialist Brando Benifei called the discussion “inevitable.”
The trade agreement, finalised in July 2025, was signed as a compromise to avoid escalation after Trump threatened broader tariffs. It imposes a 15% U.S. tariff on most EU exports but requires the EU to eliminate import duties on U.S. industrial goods, including a 10% car tariff, and open markets to certain American agricultural and seafood products.
The deal was already criticised by many, calling it “lopsided” and unfavourable to Europe.
Trump’s Greenland rhetoric has now been taken seriously after he invaded Venezuela and captured its president. European leaders have criticised the proposal, reiterating that Greenland is part of Denmark. Greenlandic and Danish officials have rebuffed the idea, calling it an infringement on sovereignty. The Danish PM has even said that if the US seizes Greenland using force, it will lead to the collapse of NATO.
