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Earlier today, a so-called Coalition of the Willing, largely composed of European leaders, gathered in the French capital with envoys of US President Donald Trump, attempting to achieve additional progress on a sustainable peace deal for the embattled nation.

With Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky insisting that a roadmap to end the war with Russia is "90% of the way there", not a single person in that meeting desired to risk retaining the Washington onboard.

Yet, there was an immense elephant in the room in that opulent and glittering gathering, and the fundamental atmosphere was extremely uneasy.

Recall the actions of the recent days: the White House's controversial intervention in Venezuela and the American leader's assertion following this, that "we need Greenland from the viewpoint of national security".

Greenland is the world's greatest island – it's six times the area of Germany. It is situated in the Arctic region but is an self-governing region of Copenhagen.

At the summit, Mette Frederiksen, the Danish Prime Minister, was seated opposite two key individuals acting for Trump: diplomat Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner.

She was subject to urging from European colleagues to avoid antagonising the US over the Arctic question, for fear that that undermines US support for Ukraine.

The continent's officials would have greatly desired to keep Greenland and the discussions on Ukraine apart. But with the diplomatic heat escalating from the White House and Denmark, leaders of leading states at the talks issued a communiqué saying: "The island is part of the alliance. Stability in the North must therefore be attained collectively, in conjunction with treaty partners including the United States".

"Sovereignty is for Copenhagen and the Greenlandic authorities, and them alone, to rule on affairs concerning Denmark and Greenland," the communiqué further stated.

The communique was greeted by the island's leader, Jens Frederik Nielsen, but observers say it was tardy to be drafted and, because of the restricted group of endorsers to the statement, it failed to show a Europe united in intent.

"If there had been a joint position from all 27 European Union countries, in addition to NATO ally the UK, in support of Danish control, that would have conveyed a powerful signal to the US," stated a European defense expert.

Consider the paradox at hand at the European gathering. Several European national and other leaders, including NATO and the EU, are trying to involve the White House in safeguarding the future sovereignty of a European country (Ukraine) against the aggressive land claims of an external actor (Russia), immediately after the US has intervened in sovereign Venezuela with force, arresting its head of state, while also persistently openly undermining the autonomy of a further EU member (the Kingdom of Denmark).

To compound the situation – Copenhagen and the US are both signatories of the defensive pact NATO. They are, as stated by Copenhagen, profoundly close allies. Previously, they were considered so.

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

Europe Risks Being Marginalized

This is not an isolated incident President Trump has voiced his resolve to control the Arctic island. He's proposed buying it in the past. He's also not excluded a military seizure.

On Sunday that the landmass is "crucially located right now, Greenland is patrolled by Russian and Chinese ships all over the place. Our security demands Greenland from the vantage point of defense and Copenhagen is not going to be able to handle it".

Denmark contests that assertion. It recently pledged to invest $4bn in Arctic security for boats, drones and aircraft.

Under a treaty, the US has a military base already on the island – founded at the onset of the Cold War. It has reduced the figure of troops there from about 10,000 during peak that era to about 200 and the US has often been faulted of neglecting polar defense, up to this point.

Denmark has indicated it is amenable to dialogue about a bigger US presence on the island and more but faced with the US President's assertion of unilateral action, the Danish PM said on Monday that Trump's ambition to acquire Greenland should be treated with gravity.

Following the US administration's actions in Venezuela this weekend, her fellow leaders throughout Europe are heeding that warning.

"The current crisis has just emphasized – yet again – the EU's core weakness {