EU lawmakers put US trade pact on hold after Trump threatens tariffs over Greenland

The European Parliament has suspended work on the European Union’s trade agreement with the United States, citing US President Donald Trump’s push to acquire Greenland and his threats to impose tariffs on European allies that oppose the plan.

Lawmakers had been examining draft legislation to reduce a wide range of EU import duties on American goods — a core element of the agreement reached in Turnberry, Scotland, at the end of July — as well as proposals to extend zero tariffs on US lobster imports first agreed with Trump in 2020. Both measures require approval from the parliament and EU member states.

While many parliamentarians have criticised the agreement as unbalanced — noting that the EU would remove most import duties while the US maintains a broad 15% tariff — they had until now appeared prepared to back it, subject to conditions. These included an 18-month sunset clause and safeguards to address any surge in US imports.

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The European Parliament’s trade committee was due to finalise its position in votes scheduled for January 26–27. Those votes have now been postponed. Committee chair Bernd Lange said at a news conference on Wednesday that Trump’s renewed tariff threats had effectively dismantled the Turnberry deal, adding that the process would be paused indefinitely.

Putting the agreement on ice risks provoking retaliation from Washington, potentially resulting in higher US tariffs. The Trump administration has also made clear it will not offer concessions — such as reducing tariffs on spirits or steel — until the deal is formally in place.

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Trump has warned that six EU countries, including major economies France and Germany, could face tariffs for resisting his demand to take control of Greenland.

EU leaders are due to convene an emergency summit in Brussels on Thursday evening to discuss US threats relating to Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark.

The bloc is considering a range of responses if Trump does not step back, including formally shelving last year’s trade deal and imposing retaliatory tariffs worth up to 93 billion euros ($108 billion) on US goods. That package was agreed during the height of last year’s EU-US trade confrontation but was suspended until February 6 to avoid an all-out trade war.

Separately, French President Emmanuel Macron is urging the EU to activate its powerful anti-coercion trade instrument should Trump follow through on his threats.

With inputs from agencies