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This very day, a so-called Coalition of the Committed, predominantly consisting of EU officials, convened in the French capital with envoys of the Trump administration, attempting to achieve additional progress on a durable settlement for the embattled nation.

With President Volodymyr Zelensky declaring that a roadmap to end the conflict with Russia is "largely complete", not a single person in that room desired to endanger retaining the Americans onboard.

Yet, there was an immense glaring omission in that opulent and glittering Paris meeting, and the underlying tension was extremely tense.

Bear in mind the actions of the last few days: the White House's divisive involvement in the South American nation and the US president's insistence following this, that "our national security requires Greenland from the perspective of defense".

Greenland is the world's largest island – it's sixfold the area of Germany. It is located in the far north but is an autonomous possession of Copenhagen.

At the summit, Mette Frederiksen, Copenhagen's leader, was seated facing two influential figures representing Trump: special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's adviser Jared Kushner.

She was subject to urging from European counterparts to avoid provoking the US over the Greenland issue, in case that undermines US backing for Ukraine.

The continent's officials would have much rather to keep the Arctic dispute and the discussions on Ukraine distinct. But with the tensions mounting from the White House and Denmark, representatives of big European nations at the Paris meeting put out a declaration saying: "Greenland is part of NATO. Defense in the Arctic must therefore be attained together, in conjunction with NATO allies such as the US".

"Sovereignty is for Copenhagen and Greenland, and them alone, to decide on matters regarding the kingdom and its autonomous territory," the communiqué added.

The statement was greeted by the island's leader, Jens Frederik Nielsen, but observers say it was tardy to be formulated and, due to the limited set of supporters to the statement, it did not manage to show a Europe aligned in objective.

"Were there a common position from all 27 member states, in addition to NATO ally the UK, in backing of Danish control, that would have conveyed a resounding warning to America," stated a EU foreign policy specialist.

Ponder the contradiction at play at the Paris summit. Multiple EU government and other leaders, such as the alliance and the EU, are attempting to engage the White House in protecting the future sovereignty of a EU nation (Ukraine) against the hostile geopolitical designs of an outside force (Moscow), on the heels of the US has swooped into sovereign Venezuela with force, arresting its head of state, while also persistently actively undermining the autonomy of another European nation (the Kingdom of Denmark).

To make matters even more stark – Denmark and the US are both participants of the defensive pact NATO. They are, as stated by Danish officials, profoundly close allies. At least, they were.

The question is, were Trump to act upon his goal to bring Greenland under US control, would it constitute not just an existential threat to the alliance but also a profound problem for the European Union?

Europe Risks Being Trampled Underfoot

This is not the first time Trump has expressed his resolve to dominate the Arctic island. He's floated the idea of purchasing it in the past. He's also refused to rule out forcible annexation.

He insisted that the landmass is "so strategic right now, it is patrolled by Russian and Chinese vessels all over the place. It is imperative to have Greenland from the standpoint of strategic interests and Copenhagen is incapable to handle it".

Denmark refutes that assertion. It not long ago committed to spend $4bn in Arctic security encompassing boats, drones and aircraft.

Pursuant to a treaty, the US maintains a military base already on the island – established at the start of the East-West standoff. It has scaled down the number of staff there from about 10,000 during peak the confrontation to approximately 200 and the US has long been accused of taking its eye off the northern theater, recently.

Denmark has suggested it is amenable to dialogue about a bigger US presence on the territory and more but faced with the US President's warning of independent moves, Frederiksen said on Monday that the US leader's goal to control Greenland should be treated with gravity.

In the wake of the American intervention in Venezuela this weekend, her colleges in Europe are heeding that warning.

"These developments has just highlighted – for the umpteenth time – Europe's core weakness {