The Trump threat to Greenland may have receded for the moment but the episode is a clear warning to the European Union. It needs to ready itself for a no-holds-barred confrontation with the United States that will determine the future of the continent for generations to come.

Ten years ago, the EU faced an existential threat with the decision of the United Kingdom to leave the union. During the Brexit saga that followed, the member states came together in an unprecedented show of unity and, instead of falling apart as the Brexiteers had confidently expected, the union emerged stronger and more united.

The current threat from the US is even more dangerous. Trump has made no bones about his wish to destroy the EU and turn western Europe into a collection of vassal states that will do America’s bidding. He has encouraged anti-EU forces across the continent as part of his strategy.

Having spent the past year trying to cajole Trump with soft words, the leaders of the major European powers were shocked by his Greenland adventurism into taking a stand and threatening to retaliate if he launched a trade war in pursuit of his plan.

The US president’s sudden change of tack took some of the drama out of the emergency meeting of EU leaders in Brussels on Thursday night, but the threat remains and could be........

© The Irish Times