LONDON, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- Most British adults said they would support Britain imposing tariffs on American imports if the United States were to levy tariffs on British goods in response to European countries' opposition to U.S. moves to assert control over Greenland, according to a new YouGov poll released on Monday.
The survey of 5,330 British adults found that 45 percent of respondents strongly support a British tariff response, 22 percent chose somewhat support, while only 6 percent strongly oppose the retaliatory tariff, and around one in five were unsure.
The polling comes amid escalating tensions between Western governments and Washington. Trump announced tariffs on imports from eight European allies on Saturday, including Britain, in response to their military deployments to Greenland and opposition to U.S. ambitions in the Arctic.
Trump announced on Saturday that the United States would impose a 10 percent tariff from Feb. 1 on goods from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, Britain, the Netherlands and Finland over Greenland, and raise the levy to 25 percent from the beginning of June unless a deal is reached for the United States to purchase the territory.
Greenland, the world's largest island, is a self-governing territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, with Copenhagen retaining control over defense and foreign policy. The United States maintains a military base on the island.
Leaders of EU countries will hold an emergency summit on Thursday to discuss U.S. threats, European Commission spokesperson Olof Gill said on Monday.
Gill said the EU continues to engage "at all levels" with Washington over its new tariff threats and is taking "every possible step" to protect the bloc's economic interests. He added that the use of the anti-coercion instrument is not ruled out. ■
