Lower Thirds:

0:03	Report by | Thorkil Rothe
0:11	Lars Lokke Rasmussen | Danish Foreign Minister

((info: In an urgent meeting on Sunday EU ambassadors discussed how best to respond to the White House's latest attempt to annex Greenland, mounting economic pressure on the EU countries that support the island - which is a semi-autonomous territory under the Danish Kingdom. One response could be retaliatory economic measures by the EU including the so-called Bazooka, an anti-coercion instrument limiting trade with unfriendly countries. Many European countries and EU leaders have voiced support for Greenland, but it remains uncertain if that support will move beyond words.))

Script: 

With the threat of US tariffs as backdrop, the Danish foreign minister is walking a diplomatic tightrope.  

((SOT LARS LOKKE RASMUSSEN RWNE_20260118_7678))
    “Well, honestly speaking, I think you must follow more than one track. I mean, we have been asking, since the very beginning of this, to have a constructive dialogue with our American ally and friends, free from social media and headlines and strong words. ((WHITE FLASH)) But then, at the same time, of course, we need the European Union to respond. I will not develop that response at this press conference. There is close consultation going on among our European friends.”

((Shots Brussels))
What a European response could look like could soon become clearer. 

(( post RWNE_20260118_7721))
The President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, has called on EU leaders to convene in the coming days - to coordinate in the face of recent developments. 

((shots from meeting outside knuckles))
Just days ago, Denmark was hoping for a diplomatic breakthrough in a meeting with US vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. 

((RWNE_20260116_7382 ))
but Trump is refusing to budge on his Greenland takeover ambitions - and has announced tariffs on Denmark and other European countries who oppose him.

The US Treasury Secretary outlined the reasoning behind Trump's aggressive policy on NBC News's Meet the Press

((SOURCE: MEET THE PRESS))
((SOT AP_20260118_4631257 1. SOUNDBITE (English) Scott Bessent, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury:))
We are not going to outsource our national security. We are going to outsource our hemispheric security to other countries.
WEISSBLITZ
And if there were an attack on Greenland, from Russia, from some other area, we would get dragged in. So better now, peace through strength, make it part of the United States
 
((statement RWNE_20260118_7678))
Denmark and the other seven European countries threatened by US tariffs have issued a joined statement, warning against what they called "a dangerous downward spiral" 

but also stating they remained prepared for "dialogue based on the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity"  

But so far, there's little to suggest Washington is ready to engage in that kind of dialogue.

+++end at 02:11+++