Trump has invited Putin to join Gaza’s ‘Board of Peace’, says Kremlin – Europe live

From 45m agoTrump has invited Russia's Putin to join 'Board of Peace' for Gaza, Kremlin saysThe Kremlin’s latest comments – essentially playing on Trump’s determination to ensure his place in history – come just after the Russian administration also confirmed that Russian president Vladimir Putin has been invited to join US president Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” meant to oversee governance and reconstruction in postwar Gaza.Peskov told journalists that Russia was seeking to “clarify all the nuances” of the offer with Washington, amid media reports about certain unusual conditions of the membership in the body.Key events2m agoShould Trump impose tariffs, EU 'has tools at disposal' to respond to 'do everything necessary' to protect interests, bloc says4m ago'Intensive consultations' on response to Trump's tariff threats, but focus on engagement, EU says45m agoTrump has invited Russia's Putin to join 'Board of Peace' for Gaza, Kremlin says52m agoKremlin says Trump would 'certainly go down in history' if he took Greenland1h agoStarmer's press conference on Greenland - summary1h agoStarmer says he doesn't think Trump is considering military action in Greenland - snap analysis1h agoDespite markedly softer tone, Starmer insists there's 'unity and coordination' with EU on response to Trump - snap analysis1h agoStarmer picks up suggestion military moves on Greenland may have been misunderstood by Trump - snap analysis2h agoNot clear how - or if - UK would retaliate against US tariffs - snap analysis2h agoStarmer doesn't respond to questions if UK would retaliate with tariffs against US2h agoUK will be 'pragmatic,' but not 'passive,' Starmer says2h agoTrump's tariff threats 'completely wrong,' with trade war 'in no one's interest,' Starmer says2h ago'Any decision on Greenland belongs to people of Greenland and Denmark alone,' Starmer says2h agoStarmer warns about 'markedly more turbulent' times, but reiterates importance of US relationship2h agoUK's Starmer gives press conference on Greenland - watch live2h agoGreenland's dogsled federation welcomes withdrawal of invitation for US envoy to attend its annual race2h agoGermany, France push back against Trump's 'blackmail' on tariffs and Greenland2h agoTrump's explosive letter came in response to request for phone call, Norwegian PM says2h agoMorning opening: 'I no longer feel obligation to think purely of peace'Show key events onlyPlease turn on JavaScript to use this featureShould Trump impose tariffs, EU 'has tools at disposal' to respond to 'do everything necessary' to protect interests, bloc saysBut the EU’s Gill adds that “should the threatened tariffs be imposed, the European Union has tools at its disposal and is prepared to respond because we will do everything necessary to protect EU’s economic interests.”But then he repeats the earlier line that “our priority is to engage, not escalate,” and that the EU’s engagement with the US “is continuing at all levels.”But he says: “Sometimes the most responsible form of leadership is restraint.” He says he is not aware of plans for a Trump – von der Leyen meeting, but notes they’ll both be in Davos this week.'Intensive consultations' on response to Trump's tariff threats, but focus on engagement, EU saysThe European Commission’s daily briefing is now under way.The commission’s deputy chief spokesperson and trade lead, Olof Gill, says that “intensive consultations are ongoing among EU leaders,” but he says that “it’s clear from the consultations among EU leaders, including president von der Leyen, that the priority here is to engage, not escalate and avoid the imposition of tariffs.” “Why? Because this will ultimately harm consumers and businesses on both sides of the Atlantic.” Meanwhile, we are also getting a line from France, that the country’s president Emmanuel Macron will hold a defence and national security meeting at midday to discuss Greenland, among other issues.Germany’s Friedrich Merz is also expected to speak about Greenland and tariffs at a domestic event early afternoon.Trump has invited Russia's Putin to join 'Board of Peace' for Gaza, Kremlin saysThe Kremlin’s latest comments – essentially playing on Trump’s determination to ensure his place in history – come just after the Russian administration also confirmed that Russian president Vladimir Putin has been invited to join US president Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” meant to oversee governance and reconstruction in postwar Gaza.Peskov told journalists that Russia was seeking to “clarify all the nuances” of the offer with Washington, amid media reports about certain unusual conditions of the membership in the body.Kremlin says Trump would 'certainly go down in history' if he took GreenlandMeanwhile, the Kremlin said that it was hard to disagree with experts who said that US president Donald Trump would go down in the history of the United States and the world if he took control of Greenland, Reuters reported.“Here, perhaps, it is possible to abstract from whether this is good or bad, whether it will comply with the parameters of international law or not,” spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said, but stated it would “certainly go down in history.”Starmer's press conference on Greenland - summary UK prime minister Keir Starmer has insisted that “any decision on Greenland belongs to people of Greenland and Denmark alone” (10:25), as he criticised Trump’s plan to impose tariffs on allies are “completely wrong” (10:26) in some of his strongest comments about the US president yet. But he still hit markedly softer tones than most European allies, such as France and Germany, (9:56) in his response to US president Donald Trump’s escalating rhetoric on Greenland, refusing to commit to any form of retaliation against US tarrifs (10:35), and reiterating the strategic importance of the UK’s relationship with the US (10:22). When pushed on this, he insisted the approach he has taken has generated billions of pounds in investment and security cooperation with the US keeps the UK safe in ways he cannot always discuss. Starmer also appeared to pick up a suggestion, first floated by Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni, that the European decision to move military personnel to Greenland may have been misunderstood by Trump (10:45). The UK prime minister also said he would continue engaging with Trump “in coming days” and will speak with the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen “today or tomorrow” as he insisted that the UK was closely coordinating with the EU on this issue (10:52). For more quotes and UK specific lines, check UK blog with Andrew Sparrow:Starmer says he doesn't think Trump is considering military action in Greenland - snap analysisJakub KrupaIt’s also worth noting Starmer’s comment that he doesn’t think that Trump is actually considering military action on Greenland.“I don’t actually. I think that this can be resolved and should be resolved, through, calm discussion.”Not entirely sure Denmark or other European allies will see it the same way, though – or that they have much faith in “calm discussions” with Trump.Denmark has tried it last week, mind you, with that high-level meeting with JD Vance and Rubio and a decision to set up a working group on Greenland, only to then hear more and more rapidly escalating rhetoric coming from the US.Despite markedly softer tone, Starmer insists there's 'unity and coordination' with EU on response to Trump - snap analysisJakub KrupaDespite Starmer’s very markedly different, much softer, tone from that of other EU leaders, he insists there is “proper unity and coordination” in the EU and the UK’s response. “I spoke to a number of EU leaders last night, I spoke to Ursula von der Leyen last night and intend to do so again, either today or tomorrow, so that we’re closely aligned. There’s proper unity and coordination in our response. They will decide exactly what they will do next during the course of today in the coming days, but we’re working very closely with them.” But he also – as he has been throughout this press conference – once again picks bits where he agrees with Trump, as he says “Europe needs to do more on defence and security.” “We haven’t actually been able to be as effective as we might otherwise have been if we coordinated in years gone by. And I think it’s really time for Europe to be much more united, much stronger on this issue. And that’s one of the arguments I’ve been leading on and making, to allies and leaders for some consistent and considerable time now.” Starmer picks up suggestion military moves on Greenland may have been misunderstood by Trump - snap analysisJakub KrupaIt’s also interesting how Starmer picks up a suggestion from a journalist that Trump may have misunderstood the European push to move some (limited) military personnel to Greenland as a move against him, and not as their way of showing they hear and want to engage with his arguments on the importance of securing the Arctic.He says “that is one of the things I discussed with President Trump yesterday, … those forces which were clearly there to assess and work on risk from the Russians.”I think Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, one of Europe’s best Trump whisperers, was the first leader to float this narrative as an off-ramp of sorts for all involved over the weekend, and this seems to be gaining some momentum.Not clear how - or if - UK would retaliate against US tariffs - snap analysisJakub KrupaThis press conference feels like Starmer trying to explain why the UK is not as hawkish as, say, France or Germany (9:56) in its response to Trump’s threats on Greenland.He keeps stressing how interconnected the UK is with the US, from economic issues to intelligence and defence, and how it therefore makes it absolutely critical to put diplomacy ahead of everything else, at all costs.But does that mean he would not retaliate at all if Trump followed through on his tariff threats?And the obvious question there, however, is: what if, now or further down the line, we discover that this soft approach simply doesn’t and won’t work?Starmer doesn't respond to questions if UK would retaliate with tariffs against USIn a hint of what the UK’s response could be, Starmer says “the tariffs should not be used against allies in this way in relation to the escalation.”But, despite being pushed on this point twice now, he doesn’t say if the UK would retaliate or not if Trump followed through on his threat on tariffs.There are a lot of words there about the need to offer a consistent response, but it’s genuinely not clear if that’s a yes or a no.He says “tariffs are not in anybody’s interest” and that he wants to avoid it, but does not say what he would do if they were unavoidable as a result of Trump’s actions.UK will be 'pragmatic,' but not 'passive,' Starmer saysStarmer also says that the UK’s view is to be pragmatic and not play to the audience or propose grandiose gestures, but to work behind the scenes to get to some sort of agreement.He says: “Britain is a pragmatic country. We look for agreement. We believe in partnership, we prefer solutions to slogans and we will not indulge in commentary and gesture politics that harm the British people. But being pragmatic does not mean being passive. A partnership does not mean abandoning principle. That is why it’s important to be clear about who we stand with, what we stand for, and where our interests lie. … There will always be people who reach for the performative, who think an angry social media post or grandstanding is a substitute for hard work. That’s an understandable instinct, but it’s not effective. It never has been. It may make politicians feel good, but it does nothing for working people whose jobs, livelihoods and security rely on the relationships that we build across the world.” (Andrew Sparrow gives a bit more UK context on that here.)Not entirely clear what all of this means in practice though – would the UK impose retaliating tariffs on the US, for example? – so expect him to get asked about it later.There’s also a fairly nuanced explanation from Starmer on why he thinks all of that matters – should matter – to an average British person, as it affects their daily lives, as he proposes what he says “an active government” policy.I’m sure Andrew Sparrow will pick up on what it means over on the UK blog.