EU's strategy of appeasement shattered by Trump's threats

As the sun set over the port of Limassol in Cyprus, the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, last Thursday used a tried and tested formula, calling the US one of "our allies, our partners".

- Jennifer Rankin BRUSSELS

Only 24 hours earlier, Denmark, an EU and Nato member state, had warned that Donald Trump was intent on "conquering" Greenland, but the reflex at the top of the EU to describe the US as a friend runs deep.

Trump's announcement that eight countries that have supported Greenland would face tariffs unless there was a deal to sell the territory to the US mocked the notion that the US is Europe's ally. The countries include six EU member states, as well as Norway and the UK, the latter unprotected by the much vaunted "special relationship".

It suggests that Europe's strategy of flattering and appeasing the US president has failed.

For critics, exhibit A is von der Leyen's decision to sign a trade deal with Trump that was deeply skewed in favour of the US. While the EU agreed to eliminate tariffs on many US goods, it accepted 15% duties on many products and 50% on steel.

After years of the EU extolling its heft as a trade player, the terms of the EU-US trade deal signed last July were seen as a humiliation.

Von der Leyen defended that deal by saying it provided "crucial stability in our relations with the US" at a time of acute instability in an "unforgiving" world.