EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen refused to confirm that Greenland is covered by the EU’s mutual defence clause on Wednesday, as US President Donald Trump renewed his threats to seize the semi-autonomous Danish territory.
“There are many speculations out there about what should be done, what could be done, what may be done,” the European Commission chief told reporters, when asked whether the so-called Article 42.7 of the EU Treaty would apply if the US invaded the mineral-rich Arctic island, which is part of the Danish kingdom but is not formally an EU member.
Her comments come just days after Defence Commissioner Andrius Kubilius said the clause – which obliges EU countries to provide “aid and assistance by all the means in their power” to a member state that is a “victim of armed aggression”– would “definitely” apply if the US attacked Greenland.
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The Danish Defense Ministry has deployed military equipment and special forces units to Greenland as it plans to send major forces and other defense units there as well, the Danmarks Radio (DR) broadcaster reported.
ReplyDeleteThe broadcaster also published photos of the Challenger bombardier, which landed in the Greenlandic capital, Nuuk, on Monday. However, the news outlet has not yet confirmed whether the aircraft is connected to special forces units. A military command spokesperson has not commented on the information.