France demands suspension of EU-US trade deal: response to Trump's tariff blackmail over Greenland

When Washington threatens tariffs for Greenland, Paris proposes to put the entire trade architecture with the US on hold.

France has publicly stated for the first time that it supports the suspension of the new EU-US trade agreement - in response to Donald Trump's threats to impose additional tariffs against European countries that do not agree to his plans for Greenland.⁷ Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot called the use of tariffs “blackmail,” and President Emmanuel Macron warned: if Washington turns tariffs into a tool of pressure for the sake of territorial claims, Europe must show that it will not be a hostage to foreign ultimatums.^{9 10} There is more to this dispute than just the % in the tariff tables - it is a test of whether the EU is able to speak to the White House in the language of mutual respect, not fear of punishment.

What exactly is France proposing: “putting the deal on hold”?

Speaking in the National Assembly, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said that Paris supports the suspension of the EU-US trade agreement concluded last summer.^{7 11} According to him, “the threat of tariffs is being used as blackmail to obtain unjustified concessions,” and the European Union must respond using the “very powerful tools” that the European Commission possesses.⁷ The key one is the ability to freeze the implementation of agreements that reduce customs rates for American goods.

This is an agreement under which the EU agreed to a base tariff rate of 15% on a wide range of American goods - instead of the 30% that Trump initially threatened as part of a new trade war.^{6 12} The document also provides for zero tariffs for certain categories of American exports to the EU - from certain types of industrial products to agricultural goods not produced in Europe.⁶ It is this package that the French government is proposing to "pause" while Washington threatens tariffs for Greenland.

What threats did Trump make: Greenland as a reason for tariffs?

According to Reuters and Argus Media, US President Donald Trump has threatened additional tariffs against a number of European countries — primarily France, Germany and several other EU members — "until he is allowed to take control of Greenland."^{7 6} The package of threats includes an additional 10 percent tariff on imports from these countries, on top of the already agreed 15 percent, effectively returning Europe to a full-scale trade war scenario.⁶ .

At the same time, Trump announced his intention to impose 200 percent tariffs on French wines and threatened to expand the list of goods if the EU did not agree to his demands regarding Greenland, which he has repeatedly described as a strategic "asset" for the United States.^{4 9} Thus, tariffs became not a tool for protecting the internal market, but a lever of pressure in a dispute concerning the territorial status of part of the Kingdom of Denmark.

Macron: Tariff blackmail over Greenland is "unacceptable"

French President Emmanuel Macron was one of the first to respond to Trump's threats. In a statement released in Paris and via the X platform, he called the tariff decisions tied to the Greenland issue "unacceptable" and stressed that if they were confirmed, Europe would respond "in a unified and coordinated way."^{9 10} "No intimidation or threats will affect us - neither in relation to Ukraine, nor in relation to Greenland, nor anywhere else in the world," Macron declared, effectively aligning the two key fronts of the current confrontation with the Kremlin and the White House.

At the Davos forum, where Trump announced 200 percent tariffs on French wines, Macron went further and publicly condemned “the endless accumulation of new tariffs that are becoming a tool against territorial sovereignty.”⁴ He also announced France's decision to send a military contingent to Greenland "not for escalation, but to support its ally, Denmark."⁴ Thus, Paris shows that it is ready to respond not only with economic, but also with political and security gestures.

European Parliament and European Commission: how Brussels is preparing a response

France is not isolated. The leaders of the largest factions in the European Parliament have already called for the suspension of the process of approving the legislative acts necessary for the full implementation of the EU-US agreement until Washington abandons its tariff blackmail.⁸ . The chairman of the international trade committee, Bernhard Lange, said that “work on the implementation of the agreement should be frozen” and zero tariffs on a number of American goods should be postponed.⁶ .

Brussels is also proposing to use a new “Anti-Coercion Instrument” (ACI), which would allow the EU to respond to economic pressure from third countries by restricting their access to the European market for goods, services, investments and public procurement.^{6 3} Although the use of ACI against the US has so far been considered "politically absurd", some European politicians now recognize that if the tool is not used in a situation of open blackmail, it risks becoming a dead norm.

What the deal looks like: 15% instead of 30% and zero duties for some goods

To understand the stakes, it’s worth briefly recalling the parameters of the trade deal that France is now ready to put on hold. According to The Guardian and Argus Media, the new agreement imposes a 15 percent tariff on almost all European goods exported to the United States, including cars, instead of the average 4,8 percent that was in effect before.¹² This is many times higher than previous rates, but less than the 30% that Trump initially threatened, using the deadline as a lever to pressure the EU.¹² .

At the same time, the agreement provides for zero tariffs on a number of American goods that are included in the list of "sensitive" for Washington: certain types of industrial components, equipment, and some agricultural products that the EU does not produce or produces in insufficient quantities.⁶ For Germany, Italy, Denmark, Ireland and other countries, it was a compromise: they agreed to higher tariffs in exchange for avoiding a full-scale trade war and maintaining access to the American market for key industries, from pharmaceuticals to automotive.¹² Now France is questioning this "compromise truce."

The position of other European players: unity or fault line

Not everyone in the EU is ready to escalate the conflict with Washington with the same intensity. Germany, in particular, is still vocal about its support for the agreement: Chancellor Friedrich Merz has previously called the agreement "an important barrier against a trade war" and a signal that "the worst-case scenario has been avoided."¹² Some centrist and center-right forces in the European Parliament also emphasize that the agreement, despite its shortcomings, stabilizes the framework for trade with the United States and allows businesses to plan investments.

However, attitudes are changing amid Trump's new threats. European People's Party leader Manfred Weber has already admitted that "under the current circumstances, approval of the agreement is impossible" and that zero tariffs on certain American goods "must be postponed."⁶ . British Prime Minister Keir Starmer — of a country that is no longer part of the EU but remains an important transatlantic player — called Trump's tariff threats "completely wrong," though he stopped short of promising mirror sanctions.⁶ Europe once again finds itself faced with a familiar dilemma: where to draw the line between pragmatism and accommodation.

The Greenland Knot: A Trade War in Exchange for Territory

At the center of the dispute is Greenland, an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, which Trump has tried to turn into a bargaining chip for a long time. In parallel with the tariff pressure, he has launched a political campaign with the appointment of a special envoy to Greenland, statements about the "strategic necessity" of control over the island for the United States, and informal signals from Copenhagen and Nuuk that a "voluntary change of status" could open a new page in relations with Washington.^{2 3} .

European capitals perceive such statements as a frontal challenge to the principle of the territorial integrity of allies. When tariffs become a condition for “access” to foreign territory, it destroys the very logic of the post-war order, in which borders are not changed through economic blackmail.^{3 10} That is why France is so tightly linking the topic of Greenland and tariffs: it is not just about percentages in customs tables, but about whether the US can use its economic weight as a battering ram against the sovereignty of allies.

What does this threaten Ukraine and other US partners with?

For Ukraine, the story of the French demand to suspend the EU-US agreement is another indicator of how unpredictable Washington's trade and foreign policy has become under Trump. If the White House is ready to blackmail France, Denmark and Germany with tariffs for the sake of territorial ambitions in Greenland, then guarantees of long-term support for Ukraine no longer look unconditional.^{5 9} Each new episode of trade pressure undermines trust in the US as a supposed ally.

In addition, the trade wars between the US and the EU directly hit the global economy, to which Ukraine is also tied - through the export of metal, agricultural products, participation in supply chains. If Europe is forced to respond to Trump's tariffs with symmetrical measures, this will increase recession risks, reduce the availability of investment and aid, including for allied countries at war^{3 6} It is becoming increasingly important for Kyiv to diversify economic ties without relying on a single center of power.

Will it stop Trump: EU tools and containment policy

Europe has more leverage in trade than it often seems. The EU remains the world's largest market, and restricting access to it causes tangible losses even for American businesses. The use of ACI, freezing the zero-tariff agreement, the introduction of targeted tariffs on sensitive sectors for the US - from aircraft manufacturing to digital giants - are not abstract threats, but scenarios that are already being calculated in Brussels.^{3 6} .

However, the political question is different: will the EU be willing to use these tools against the Trump administration, risking a new round of escalation, or will it choose the path of partial concessions in order to preserve “working relations”?^{10 12} France is clearly leaning towards the first option, calling for a repeat of the experience of previous trade crises, when Europe seemed paralyzed. Other capitals will for now balance between fear of a trade war and reluctance to legitimize tariff blackmail.

What's next: the EU summit, Trump's Davos speech, and Greenland's long shadow

According to Argus Media, EU leaders are due to meet on January 22 to approve a joint response to Trump's actions, including a possible freeze on the implementation of the agreement and the activation of the ACI.⁶ On the eve, Trump will speak at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where Macron, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will be sitting in the hall.⁶ This will be a rare moment when European leaders can publicly and directly respond to his ultimatums.

The Greenland story is unlikely to disappear after one summit. It has already become a symbol of the shift from classical diplomacy to the geopolitics of pressure, where tariffs, troops and “special envoys” are used in the same toolbox.^{2 3} . For Europe, the answer to this challenge will determine whether it can remain a subject, rather than an object, of American domestic political games. For Ukraine, this is another argument to urgently strengthen its integration with the EU and at the same time learn to live in a world where trade and political wars periodically break out even between major allies.

Sources

1. Le Monde / other French media: analysis of the escalation between the US and the EU over Greenland and Trump's tariff threats.
2. BBC News live: reports on Trump's demands for Greenland and the reaction of European capitals.
3. Le Monde (English version): "Europe signals readiness to hit back after Trump's tariff threat" — assessment of EU instruments, in particular ACI.
4. CNBC: article with quotes from Macron in Davos about "bullying" through tariffs and 200% duty on French wines.
5. European Political Reviews: Context of the Impact of Trump's Tariff Wars on NATO, the EU, and the Security Environment Around Ukraine.
6. Argus Media: "EU stalls US trade deal over Trump Greenland tariff row" — details of the EU-US agreement (15% duty, zero tariffs for some goods), plans to suspend implementation, ACI discussions.
7. Investing.com / Global Banking & Finance: Jean-Noel Barrot's statements on France's support for suspending the EU-US agreement, quote about "tariff blackmail" and the European Commission's "powerful tools".
8. Pravda.com.ua (English version): materials about calls from leaders of European Parliament factions to suspend approval of the agreement with the US due to new tariff threats.
9. Reuters: "Macron says Trump tariff threat over Greenland unacceptable" — a direct quote from Macron about the "unacceptability" of tariff threats and the promise of a coordinated European response.
10. Marketscreener / other financial media: extended quotes from Macron regarding a "world without rules" and the inadmissibility of tariff pressure for the sake of territorial claims.
11. Al-Arabiya English / French Foreign Ministry social media accounts: video fragments and broadcasts of Barrot's speech in parliament about the possible suspension of the agreement.
12. The Guardian: analysis of the EU-US trade agreement and intra-European criticism from France, description of the parameters of the 15% tariff and the conflict surrounding it.