Europe has 'a slate of tools' to protect its interest: EU foreign chief

BRUSSELS - European Union (EU) High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas said on Monday that Europe has no interest in picking a fight with the United States, but has a range of tools at its disposal to protect its interests.

In a post on social media platform X following a meeting in Brussels with Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen and Greenlandic Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt, Kallas stressed that Arctic security is a shared transatlantic interest and an issue Europe could discuss with the United States. "But tariff threats are not the way to go about this," she said.

"Sovereignty is not for trade," Kallas added, reiterating that Europe has "no interest in picking a fight," but would stand its ground and has "a slate of tools" to safeguard its interests.

According to European Commission spokesperson Olof Gill, leaders of EU member states will hold an emergency summit in Brussels on Thursday to discuss US threats related to Greenland and assess possible retaliatory measures.