EU: US Trade Deal Is Off

The United States' trade deal with the European Union is now on ice—with Greenland at the center of the freeze. The European Parliament has halted approval of the trade deal struck in July after President Trump floated tariffs of 10% to 25% on European countries opposed to his push to acquire Greenland, per CNBC. Bernd Lange, who chairs the Parliament's trade committee and oversees EU-US trade relations, said Trump's tariff threat violates the terms of the pact, which limits tariffs on most EU imports at 15%, reports NBC News. "A deal is a deal," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. "And when friends shake hands, it must mean something."

Lange pointed to Trump's speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where the president called for "immediate negotiations" tied to acquiring the Arctic territory, which is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. Trump ruled out the use of military force, something Lange called a "small positive element," but the lawmaker said the core issue—the threatened tariffs—remains unresolved. "Until the threat of them is over, there will be no possibility of compromise," Lange said, adding that the approval process will be paused "until there is clarity regarding Greenland and the threats." He said Trump's use of tariffs for "political pressure" is "an attack against the economic and territorial sovereignty" of the EU, and urged the US to resume "a path of cooperation rather than confrontation."