Addressing the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Wednesday, US president Donald Trump called for “immediate negotiations” to acquire Greenland, while insisting he would “not use force” to take control of the autonomous Danish territory -- an issue that has dominated the summit and drawn strong criticism from American allies.
"It's the United States alone that can protect this giant mass of land, this giant piece of ice, develop it and improve it," Trump told the WEF in the Swiss ski resort of Davos.
"That's the reason I'm seeking immediate negotiations to once again discuss the acquisition of Greenland by the United States."
It is the first time Trump has ruled out using force, having previously been vague about how far he is willing to go in his push. The president said the US “probably won’t get anything” unless he decided to “use excessive strength and force” that he said would make the US “frankly unstoppable.”
“But I won’t do that. Okay?” Trump said.
He added a minute later: “I don’t have to use force. I don’t want to use force. I won’t use force.”
Trump also launched fresh attacks on Europe, praised his tariff policies and described the United States as the world’s “economic engine.” He touched on US role in Venezuela and again repeated his claim of brokering a ceasefire between India and Pakistan, and ending seven other wars.
Repeating criticisms of Europe similar to those he made in his address to the United Nations last year and in recent national security statements issued by his administration. “I love Europe and I want to see Europe go good, but it’s not heading in the right direction,” he said.
Attacks Canada, mocks Macron,
Trump needled his northern neighbor after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday that the current phase of global diplomacy was a “rupture” and called for “middle powers” to “act together.”
Trump said Canada gets many “freebies” from the US and “should be grateful.” He said Carney’s Davos speech showed he “wasn’t so grateful.”
“Canada lives because of the United States,” Trump said. “Remember that, Mark, the next time you make your statements.”
Trump also mocked French President Emmanuel Macron’s sunglasses to audience laughter.
“I watched him yesterday with those beautiful sunglasses. What the hell happened?” Trump said to the loudest laughter so far.
The French president has worn sunglasses indoors in recent days as he’s joked about a “completely harmless” eye condition.
More attacks on EU, keeps calling Greenland as 'Iceland'
However, within 20 minutes of beginning his speech, Trump had already criticised Europe several times.
He said he was European in heritage and wanted the continent to do well, but argued that European countries were "destroying themselves." He criticised Europe’s policies on wind energy, immigration and trade, delivering the remarks while many European leaders were in the audience at the conference.
“Certain places in Europe are not even recognizable,” Trump said.
“Here in Europe, we’ve seen the fate that the radical left tried to impose upon America.”
At least four times in his remarks at Davos so far, Trump has referred to Greenland as “Iceland.” He also did that a day earlier during a marathon news conference at the White House.
“They’re not there for us on Iceland that I can tell you,” Trump said of NATO partners. “I mean, our stock market took the first dip yesterday because of Iceland, so Iceland’s already cost us a lot of money.”
Trump also asserted that Denmark promised to spend “over $200 million to strengthen Greenland’s defenses” and then insisted it has “spent less than 1% of that.”
He was referring to a 2019 commitment from the Danish government, made during Trump’s first presidency, when he first floated the idea of the US taking control of the semiautonomous territory of Denmark.
Copenhagen has not disputed that the implementation of that commitment has been slow.
Hails US role in Venezuela, economy and tariffs
Meanwhile, Trump reiterated that he’s getting cooperation from Venezuelan officials following the ouster of Nicolás Maduro and predicted good times for the South American country’s economy.
“Every major oil company is coming in with us,” Trump said. ‘It’s amazing.”
Earlier this month, at a White House meeting, Exxon Mobil CEO Darren Woods said the Venezuelan market is “un-investable” in its current state.
The president also highlighted economic growth in the United States, using emphatic language to describe the country’s global role, proclaimed his country was the world's "economic engine."
"The USA is the economic engine on the planet. And when America booms, the entire world booms. It's been the history," he said
"You all follow us down, and you follow us up."
The 79-year-old credited his tariff policies for the economic performance, despite criticism from several allies in the lead-up to the Davos meeting. He also repeated his claim that he inherited record inflation and has since eliminated it.
In the first part of his Davos speech, Trump touted America’s finances and living standards, which he said he achieved against expectations.
"Virtually all of the so-called experts predicted my plans to end this failed model would trigger a global recession and runaway inflation," he said.
"But we have proven them wrong."
Trump said he wanted to spend the day discussing "how we have achieved this economic miracle" and suggested, as he did from the White House yesterday, that other countries in attendance could learn from his success.
Trump said he’s meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday. The meeting was not on Trump’s publicly released calendar and it was not clear if he meant a virtual or in-person meeting.
Zelenskyy is not believed to be in Davos.
Trump arrived by helicopter around two hours late, after Air Force One was forced to return to Washington earlier because of an electrical fault.
His remarks came amid fresh criticism from European leaders and Canada, after the 79-year-old reiterated his interest in the self-governing Danish territory before travelling to Switzerland.
Allies have dismissed the comments and closed ranks, warning they risk undermining the US-led global order. Canadain PM Carney warned at Davos of a "rupture" to the US-led system while NATO's chief called on Wednesday for "thoughtful diplomacy" to resolve one of the biggest crises in transatlantic relations for decades.
Trump is also expected to hold around five bilateral meetings with European leaders in Davos, a US official said. But in a sign of the dissent against Trump, the words "No Kings" were dug into the snow overlooking mountain-fringed Davos overnight, referring to a US protest slogan.
