Key events
At least two dead in Russian strikes on Ukraine
Meanwhile, at least two people were killed in a series of overnight Russian attacks on Ukraine, just a day before a high-level diplomatic summit in Paris on ending the war.
AFP reported that the strikes caused power outrages in some areas of the country, with backup systems activated to maintain water and heating supplies, the official said, as temperatures dropped to -8C.
Two airports in neighbouring Poland had to briefly close in the early hours on Monday, as the country’s military monitored Russian strikes on western Ukraine.
Morning opening: What a year, huh?
Jakub Krupa
Welcome back to Europe Live in 2026. Hope you all had a great break and are ready to face what’s ahead of us, as the new year looks set to be once again pretty wild.
So far, we have had the US military action in Venezuela leaving EU leaders torn, a major energy blackout in Berlin, a disruptive airspace control outage in Greece, heavy snowfalls in parts of Europe, new Russian attacks on Ukraine, and just last night, renewed US threats against Nato ally Denmark over Greenland.
Paraphrasing a popular scene from Tintin, which turned into a meme: what a year, huh? Captain, it’s only 5 January. Buckle up.
It’s not exactly normal for the Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, to have to issue a stern statement telling the US president, Donald Trump, that:
“It makes absolutely no sense to talk about the US needing to take over Greenland. The US has no right to annex any of the three countries in the Danish kingdom.”
She added:
“I would therefore strongly urge the United States to stop the threats against a historically close ally and against another country and another people who have said very clearly that they are not for sale.”
She was swiftly and pointedly backed by other regional leaders, including Finland’s Alexander Stubb, Iceland’s Kristrún Frostadóttir, Norway’s Jonas Gahr Støre and Sweden’s Ulf Kristersson.
In a post on Facebook, Greenland’s prime minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen also called Trump’s comments “completely and utterly unacceptable,” and “disrespectful.”
But speaking aboard Air Force One on Sunday hours after their remarks, Trump doubled down on his claim that Greenland should become part of the United States.
“We need Greenland from the standpoint of national security, and Denmark is not going to be able to do it,” Trump told reporters, adding:
“You know what Denmark did recently to boost up security in Greenland? They added one more dog sled. … The European Union needs us to have it and they know it.”
“We’ll worry about Greenland in about two months … let’s talk about Greenland in 20 days,” he added.
Erm.
The Danish Trump watcher, a position set up to specifically monitor what’s coming out from the US president’s mouth to alert Danish leaders, must have sighed a few times last night.
I will bring you all the key developments here.
It’s Monday, 5 January 2025 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa here, and this is Europe Live.
Good morning.
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