ISTANBUL
France said Monday that Paris and Berlin had agreed on the need to react "strongly and swiftly" in the face of new US tariff threats towards several European nations over the Greenland issue.
"France and Germany agree on the willingness and the absolute necessity to react strongly and swiftly," Finance Minister Roland Lescure told reporters during a Eurogroup meeting in Brussels.
He reiterated the importance of being united and "simply saying no" to the threats, which he described as "acts of coercion."
"Europe has to step up. As I think we both agree we're living through uncharted territories. We've never seen this before. An ally, a friend of 250 years, is considering using tariffs," Lescure underscored. "We don't want tariffs to be weaponized."
He further urged the bloc to ensure the threats do not become reality, calling for readiness to respond in a united and strong manner.
"We need to be able to show that we're willing to use all the instruments we have at our disposal, whether they are tariffs, whether they're trade agreements, whether they anti-coercion measures," Lescure added.
On Saturday, US President Donald Trump said he would impose 10% tariffs on the UK, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Finland by Feb. 1, with the tariffs rising to 25% by June 1, for their opposition to US control of Greenland and sending military personnel to the semi-autonomous Danish territory.
European countries have denounced the US threat, reaffirming their commitment to Arctic security.