The Parliament put the ratification of the agreement, signed by Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in July, on hold after the U.S. president threatened tariffs on European allies supporting Greenland.
Lead negotiators will meet on February 4 to decide on the next steps, according to Bernd Lange, Chair of the Parliament’s International Trade Committee.
In the meeting, lawmakers broadly agreed that the deal should proceed since Trump has backtracked. However, political groups are split on whether to initially use leverage with the U.S. and seek more details on the NATO-Trump agreement, according to four sources familiar with the discussions.
The center-right European People’s Party wants to proceed as soon as possible, considering it “best for businesses … to create some more stability,” according to the EPP’s key trade lawmaker, Jörgen Warborn. The right-wing ECR group and the far-right Patriots are also advocating for the continuation of work on the deal.
On the other hand, the Socialists, the liberals of Renew, and the Greens suggest a tougher stance, wanting to see more details of the Greenland deal first, citing Trump’s unpredictability.
“The guy threatened with tariffs, then he did not,” S&D’s van Brempt stated, emphasizing that the Socialists want clarity on the European Commission’s stance on using the Anti-Coercion Instrument, its most powerful trade tool, which was nearing readiness before Trump retracted his tariff threats.
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