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This very day, a informal Group of the Determined, largely composed of European officials, met in the French capital with delegates of US President Donald Trump, hoping to make additional progress on a sustainable peace agreement for Ukraine.

With President Volodymyr Zelensky insisting that a roadmap to halt the war with Russia is "largely complete", not a single person in that gathering desired to endanger keeping the US engaged.

Yet, there was an colossal unspoken issue in that opulent and luxurious summit, and the fundamental tension was profoundly strained.

Bear in mind the actions of the recent days: the Trump administration's controversial involvement in Venezuela and the President Trump's declaration shortly thereafter, that "we need Greenland from the standpoint of strategic interests".

The vast Arctic territory is the world's biggest island – it's 600% the area of Germany. It is situated in the Arctic but is an autonomous region of Denmark's.

At the summit, Mette Frederiksen, Denmark's Prime Minister, was seated across from two influential individuals acting for Trump: special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's relative Jared Kushner.

She was under pressure from European allies not to provoking the US over the Arctic question, in case that undermines US backing for the Ukrainian cause.

EU heads of state would have far preferred to keep Greenland and the debate on the war separate. But with the diplomatic heat escalating from the White House and Denmark, representatives of big EU countries at the Paris meeting put out a statement stating: "This territory is part of the alliance. Stability in the Arctic must therefore be attained together, in partnership with NATO allies like the US".

"Sovereignty is for Copenhagen and the Greenlandic authorities, and no one else, to determine on affairs regarding the kingdom and its autonomous territory," the communiqué further stated.

The announcement was received positively by the island's leader, Jens Frederik Nielsen, but analysts say it was slow to be formulated and, owing to the small group of signatories to the declaration, it failed to show a European Union aligned in objective.

"Had there been a joint position from all 27 EU partners, along with NATO ally the UK, in backing of Copenhagen's sovereignty, that would have conveyed a resounding warning to Washington," noted a European foreign policy specialist.

Consider the contradiction at work at the European gathering. Multiple European national and other leaders, including NATO and the European Union, are attempting to involve the White House in safeguarding the future independence of a continental state (the Eastern European nation) against the expansionist territorial ambitions of an external actor (Moscow), just after the US has swooped into sovereign Venezuela militarily, taking its president into custody, while also persistently openly threatening the territorial integrity of a different EU member (Denmark).

To compound the situation – Denmark and the US are both signatories of the transatlantic alliance the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. They are, as stated by Danish officials, exceptionally key friends. Or were.

The issue is, if Trump were to fulfill his goal to acquire Greenland, would it mark not just an existential threat to NATO but also a profound challenge for the European Union?

Europe Faces the Danger of Being Trampled Underfoot

This is not an isolated incident Trump has expressed his determination to acquire the Arctic island. He's proposed acquiring it in the past. He's also left open the possibility of a military seizure.

He insisted that the island is "vitally important right now, it is patrolled by foreign vessels all over the place. We need Greenland from the perspective of national security and Denmark is unable to provide security".

Copenhagen refutes that assertion. It recently committed to invest $4bn in the island's defense including boats, drones and aircraft.

Under a bilateral agreement, the US operates a military base currently on the island – founded at the onset of the East-West standoff. It has reduced the number of personnel there from about 10,000 during peak that era to about 200 and the US has frequently been criticized of overlooking Arctic Security, up to this point.

Denmark has suggested it is willing to talk about a bigger US role on the territory and more but faced with the US President's threat of going it alone, Frederiksen said on Monday that Washington's desire to take Greenland should be considered a real possibility.

In the wake of the American intervention in Venezuela this weekend, her fellow leaders in Europe are taking it seriously.

"This whole situation has just underlined – once again – Europe's fundamental weakness {