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Earlier today, a informal Coalition of the Committed, mostly made up of European heads of state, gathered in Paris with envoys of President Trump, hoping to secure further advances on a durable peace agreement for Ukraine.

With President Volodymyr Zelensky asserting that a roadmap to end the conflict with Russia is "largely complete", no-one in that meeting wanted to jeopardise maintaining the US onboard.

Yet, there was an enormous unspoken issue in that opulent and sparkling summit, and the underlying mood was profoundly uneasy.

Consider the events of the recent days: the US administration's divisive intervention in the South American nation and the US president's insistence shortly thereafter, that "our national security requires Greenland from the standpoint of national security".

Greenland is the world's greatest island – it's sixfold the area of Germany. It is located in the Arctic region but is an autonomous possession of Copenhagen.

At the summit, Mette Frederiksen, Copenhagen's leader, was positioned across from two key figures representing Trump: special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's adviser Jared Kushner.

She was subject to urging from her EU allies not to alienating the US over the Greenland issue, lest that impacts US assistance for the Ukrainian cause.

Europe's leaders would have far preferred to separate the Arctic dispute and the discussions on the war apart. But with the political temperature escalating from Washington and Denmark, representatives of major EU countries at the talks issued a statement saying: "Greenland is part of NATO. Security in the Arctic must therefore be secured collectively, in partnership with alliance members like the US".

"It is for Copenhagen and the Greenlandic authorities, and them only, to rule on issues regarding the kingdom and Greenland," the declaration continued.

The communique was greeted by Nuuk's head of government, Jens Frederik Nielsen, but analysts say it was tardy to be put together and, owing to the restricted number of signatories to the declaration, it was unable to show a European Union united in intent.

"Were there a common position from all 27 European Union countries, along with NATO ally the UK, in backing of Copenhagen's sovereignty, that would have conveyed a strong signal to America," commented a European foreign policy specialist.

Ponder the irony at play at the European gathering. Several European national and other leaders, from NATO and the EU, are trying to involve the US administration in safeguarding the future autonomy of a continental state (Ukraine) against the aggressive land claims of an outside force (Russia), just after the US has entered independent Venezuela with force, detaining its leader, while also continuing to actively threatening the sovereignty of another European nation (Denmark).

To compound the situation – Denmark and the US are both signatories of the defensive pact NATO. They are, in the view of Danish officials, extremely close allies. At least, they were.

The dilemma is, were Trump to fulfill his ambition to assert control over the island, would it represent not just an severe risk to the alliance but also a significant problem for the EU?

Europe Risks Being Overlooked

This is not an isolated incident Trump has expressed his intention to control Greenland. He's floated the idea of purchasing it in the past. He's also not excluded a military seizure.

He insisted that the territory is "vitally important right now, it is covered with Russian and Chinese vessels all over the place. It is imperative to have Greenland from the perspective of defense and Denmark is unable to handle it".

Copenhagen refutes that assertion. It not long ago pledged to invest $4bn in Greenland defence for boats, drones and aircraft.

Pursuant to a bilateral agreement, the US has a military base currently on the island – set up at the beginning of the East-West standoff. It has cut the number of troops there from around 10,000 during the height of Cold War operations to about 200 and the US has frequently been criticized of neglecting polar defense, up to this point.

Copenhagen has suggested it is amenable to dialogue about a bigger US presence on the island and more but confronted by the US President's threat of independent moves, the Danish PM said on Monday that the US leader's goal to control Greenland should be treated with gravity.

After the American intervention in Venezuela this weekend, her fellow leaders throughout Europe are heeding that warning.

"The current crisis has just emphasized – once again – Europe's basic vulnerability {