Overview
- EU leaders held an emergency Brussels meeting that closed with relief yet caution, signaling plans to accelerate strategic autonomy, reinforce defense, and keep anti‑coercion trade tools ready.
- NATO chief Mark Rutte and Danish officials said no transfer of sovereignty or access deal was reached, with Rutte noting Greenland’s status was not discussed in his meeting with Trump.
- Trump’s Davos push to launch a U.S.-led Peace Council drew sparse European participation and criticism that it could undercut the UN, with attendees including Viktor Orbán and Javier Milei.
- Financial markets recoiled during the flare‑up, with the S&P 500 down 2.1%, the Dow off 1.8% and the Nasdaq lower by 2.4% as investors weighed tariff risk and transatlantic strain.
- Trump intensified pressure on allies by singling out Spain over defense spending, while some diplomats and analysts attributed his rapid de‑escalation in part to small European troop moves to Greenland and signals from Nordic pension funds reducing U.S. exposure.