In the wintry atmosphere of Davos, very heated topics will be discussed—issues that have been popping up in recent days like mushrooms after rain. Europe, under pressure from Trump, has no clear response, and how could it, when dealing with a figure like the “accidental” president of the world’s most powerful country.
Politicians of the Old Continent operate according to the standards of diplomacy, while Trump behaves as if he has never really stepped out of his role as the host of the hugely popular TV reality show The Apprentice. He treats European leaders as if they were immature young entrepreneurs competing on the show for a job.
Trump wants Greenland like a child demanding an ice cream. On his social media platforms, he calls out governments in London and Paris, and even posted an image of Greenland with a planted American flag and the year 2026. That was not enough for him—he also depicted Canada and Venezuela covered by the American flag. Once again, the normal world asks: “Is this man sane?”
A difficult question with no possible answer. The United Kingdom has been particularly targeted—traditionally America’s closest European ally. Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s statement that U.S. actions regarding Greenland were “wrong” was met with Trump’s condemnation, as he referred to a “monumental act of stupidity” by Britain for relinquishing the Chagos Islands and handing them over to Mauritius. For Trump, this serves as an argument for why the United States must obtain Greenland. He was immediately backed by his loyal follower Nigel Farage, who thanked him for effectively vetoing the handover of the Chagos Islands.
The Chagos Islands are a group of 55 islands and reefs in the Indian Ocean, administered de facto as the British Indian Ocean Territory, despite Mauritius laying claim to them. They are best known for Diego Garcia, a military base and the world’s largest atoll. Under an as-yet unratified agreement, Britain would continue to lease the largest island, Diego Garcia, which hosts a joint U.S.–UK military base.
Trump has been no gentler toward France, which rejected participation in his proposed Peace Committee—possibly because of an alleged membership fee of one billion dollars. French President Emmanuel Macron told U.S. President Donald Trump that he does not understand what he is “doing with Greenland” and said that Trump’s tariff threats should be met with an “economic bazooka”—a set of measures that could seriously damage the interests of major American companies in Europe. In response, Trump threatened France with 200 percent tariffs on wine and champagne.
Unlike his treatment of Starmer, Trump attacked Macron on a personal level, saying that he “won’t be president much longer anyway.” He also published an image of a private message from Macron in which the French president invited Trump to dinner in Paris after the Davos conference. “Dear friend, we fully agree on Syria. We can do great things in Iran. I don’t understand what you are doing with Greenland,” reads part of Macron’s message, which French officials confirmed as authentic.
While Trump’s Peace Committee has faced rejection among Western countries, an invitation to Vladimir Putin might succeed. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that “Moscow is studying all the details of the invitation.” China has also been invited. It is believed that Trump plans to form the committee at the World Economic Forum in Davos. An invitation to Putin to be part of such a group is yet another shock for Europe, given Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.
At the resort of the rich and famous in the Swiss Alps, discussions will focus on numerous hot topics, and it is now clear that the atmosphere will be more tense than ever. There will be no Russian officials present, but state media in Moscow are openly gloating over the public dispute between Trump and European leaders, as well as the apparent further weakening of ties among NATO members and the divisions Trump continues to deepen within the European Union.
In this context, Russia has indicated that it has no issue with Trump’s ambitions regarding Greenland. “Greenland is not a natural part of Denmark,” said Sergey Lavrov. What Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thinks about all this is not yet publicly known, but Reuters reported on Tuesday that “the Ukrainian president has not yet decided whether he will attend the forum.” His decision depends on whether he will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump and on possible security and economic agreements for Ukraine, according to Jutarnji list.
Trump revealed on his social media network that he also had a “very good phone conversation” with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and said that there would be important meetings in Davos concerning Greenland.
The rift between the United States and Europe has become worse than ever before. European leaders have mostly tried to be cautious, carefully choosing their words and refraining from escalating tensions with America. However, it seems that the gloves have now come off on this side of the Atlantic as well. “It will be an interesting Davos,” Trump said as he boarded his plane.
Perhaps Trump—if that is even possible—could listen a little to others, such as EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, who urged the Union to remain calm and united in the face of the latest threats. She warned that Trump’s introduction of tariffs on European goods would “risk impoverishing both Europe and the United States and undermine our shared prosperity.”
Foto: Wikimedia/Gage Skidmore – Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic – CC-BY-SA-2.0
