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Earlier today, a informal Coalition of the Willing, largely composed of EU officials, convened in the French capital with representatives of US President Donald Trump, attempting to secure more headway on a lasting peace agreement for the embattled nation.

With President Volodymyr Zelensky insisting that a framework to end the conflict with Russia is "largely complete", nobody in that gathering desired to endanger maintaining the Washington engaged.

Yet, there was an enormous glaring omission in that impressive and glittering gathering, and the prevailing atmosphere was profoundly tense.

Recall the actions of the recent days: the White House's divisive intervention in Venezuela and the American leader's declaration shortly thereafter, that "it is essential to have Greenland from the viewpoint of defense".

This massive island is the world's largest island – it's 600% the size of Germany. It is situated in the Arctic region but is an self-governing region of Denmark's.

At the conference, Mette Frederiksen, Copenhagen's leader, was seated opposite two key individuals acting for Trump: emissary Steve Witkoff and Trump's adviser Jared Kushner.

She was facing pressure from her EU counterparts to avoid provoking the US over the Arctic question, in case that impacts US backing for the Ukrainian cause.

EU heads of state would have greatly desired to keep the Arctic dispute and the discussions on the war separate. But with the tensions escalating from Washington and Copenhagen, leaders of leading states at the Paris meeting put out a communiqué stating: "The island is part of NATO. Defense in the North must therefore be attained collectively, in cooperation with treaty partners such as the US".

"It is for Copenhagen and the Greenlandic authorities, and them only, to rule on affairs regarding the kingdom and Greenland," the statement further stated.

The communique was greeted by Greenland's prime minister, Jens Frederik Nielsen, but critics say it was delayed to be put together and, owing to the small group of signatories to the statement, it did not manage to project a European Union aligned in purpose.

"Were there a joint statement from all 27 member states, along with NATO ally the UK, in defense of Copenhagen's authority, that would have sent a powerful warning to the US," stated a European foreign policy expert.

Ponder the irony at work at the France meeting. Multiple EU national and other officials, from NATO and the EU, are attempting to involve the White House in protecting the future independence of a European country (the Eastern European nation) against the aggressive geopolitical designs of an external actor (Russia), on the heels of the US has swooped into independent Venezuela by armed intervention, arresting its head of state, while also still publicly threatening the sovereignty of another EU member (the Kingdom of Denmark).

To make matters even more stark – Denmark and the US are both participants of the transatlantic alliance the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. They are, as stated by Copenhagen, extremely close allies. Or were.

The dilemma is, if Trump were to fulfill his desire to assert control over the island, would it represent not just an severe risk to NATO but also a profound crisis for the EU?

Europe Faces the Danger of Being Overlooked

This is not an isolated incident President Trump has expressed his intention to dominate the Arctic island. He's floated the idea of purchasing it in the past. He's also not excluded forcible annexation.

Recently that the landmass is "crucially located right now, Greenland is frequented by foreign vessels all over the place. It is imperative to have Greenland from the vantage point of defense and Denmark is unable to do it".

Copenhagen refutes that claim. It recently committed to allocate $4bn in the island's defense encompassing boats, drones and aircraft.

Pursuant to a bilateral agreement, the US maintains a defense installation already on Greenland – established at the start of the East-West standoff. It has reduced the figure of personnel there from approximately 10,000 during the height of the confrontation to approximately 200 and the US has long been accused of overlooking Arctic Security, until now.

Copenhagen has suggested it is open to discussion about a bigger US presence on the island and further cooperation but in light of the US President's threat of going it alone, the Danish PM said on Monday that Washington's desire to acquire Greenland should be considered a real possibility.

In the wake of the Washington's moves in Venezuela this weekend, her colleges in Europe are taking it seriously.

"These developments has just highlighted – yet again – the EU's fundamental weakness {