EU leaders take stage in Davos as Trump rocks global order

DAVOS, Switzerland, January 21 ------ Donald Trump said he had agreed to a meeting with “various parties” this week about Greenland, as the United States president steps up pressure on European leaders at Davos over his demand to take the Arctic island from Denmark.

Trump is expected to dominate the week-long gathering of global elites at the ski resort town in eastern Switzerland, putting the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to the test with his push to take over the Danish autonomous territory. Europe is weighing countermeasures after Trump threatened to impose tariffs on eight European countries over the Greenland standoff, though Washington has warned that any retaliatory levies would be “unwise.”

Trump was not due to arrive at the World Economic Forum (WEF) until Wednesday, but was already overshadowing the agenda with a series of posts on his Truth Social platform, saying he had a “very good” call with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte over Greenland. “I agreed to a meeting of the various parties in Davos, Switzerland,” he wrote in the Monday night post. The US leader said he did not think European leaders would “push back too much” on his attempt to buy the vast strategic island, telling reporters on Monday: “They can’t protect it.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and French President Emmanuel Macron were expected to address the forum on Tuesday, along with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, whose countries have their own disputes with Trump. Trump will deliver a speech on Wednesday and is scheduled to participate in other events on Thursday. A US delegation is already on the ground in Davos to promote an American agenda that has unsettled the global order cherished by the WEF. While Macron will leave on Tuesday without seeing Trump in Davos, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he would seek to meet the US president at the forum on Wednesday.

Emergency meeting

Macron has instead sent a message to Trump to propose a Group of Seven summit in Paris on Thursday on Greenland, as well as ways to end Russia’s war on Ukraine, with Moscow and Kyiv attending on the sidelines. But Trump’s relations with Macron hit a new low Monday when the US president threatened 200-percent tariffs on French wine over France’s intention to decline an invitation to join his “Board of Peace.”

Analysts have likened the board aimed at resolving international conflicts — which has a $1-billion fee for a permanent spot — to a pay-to-play version of the UN Security Council. Trump confirmed on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin was one of various world leaders invited to join, and told reporters of Macron that “nobody wants him,” as he will “be out of office very soon.” European Union leaders will hold an emergency summit in Brussels on Thursday to discuss their response to the Greenland crisis, one of the gravest in years to hit transatlantic ties.

Trump has flagged wanting to protect Greenland from perceived Russian and Chinese threats as a key justification for taking over the strategically-located territory, though analysts suggest Beijing is a small player in the region. At a news conference in Davos, Finland’s President Alexander Stubb said “tariff threats at the allied level are unacceptable. They weaken our transatlantic relationship and, in the worst case, can lead to a vicious cycle.” When asked if the US might use force, Stubb said: “I don’t believe that the United States will take control of Greenland militarily.” Denmark has proposed that NATO start surveillance operations in Greenland to confront security concerns. AFP

Source: manilatimes.net