President Donald Trump’s push to acquire Greenland drew criticism at the World Economic Forum Jan. 20, where French President Emmanuel Macron accused Washington of reviving “imperial” politics and other European allies decried related U.S. tariff threats.
Speaking to attendees gathered for the forum in Davos, Switzerland, Macron warned that Trump’s position risks eroding international norms.
“Now is not a time for new imperialism or new colonialism,” Macron said, condemning “useless aggressivity” and arguing that Europe prefers “respect” over “bullies” and “rule of law” over “brutality.” He warned that the dispute signaled “a shift towards a world without rules.”
The remarks came as Trump continues to double down on his bid to acquire Greenland, a territory of Denmark, framing the issue as a matter of national security.
As CatholicVote previously reported, Trump has threatened tariffs beginning at 10% Feb. 1 and rising to 25% by June 1 on eight NATO allies — Denmark, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands, and Finland — if they refuse to back the U.S. position.
Trump posted a screenshot on Truth Social Jan. 20 of a message from Macron that questioned the Greenland push.
“My friend, We are totally in line on Syria. We can do great things on Iran. I do not understand what you are doing on Greenland,” Macron wrote, according to Trump’s post.
In his message, Macron also offered to host a Jan. 22 G7 meeting in Paris, with possible participation by delegations from Ukraine, Denmark, Syria, and Russia, and invited Trump to dinner the same day.
Several other European officials have warned of a potential rupture with Washington if tariffs tied to Greenland move forward. Speaking at Davos, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called the proposed tariffs a “mistake, especially between long-standing allies.”
“Ladies and gentlemen, we consider the people of the United States not just our allies, but our friends,” she said, “and plunging us into a downward spiral would only aid the very adversaries we are both so committed to keeping out of the strategic landscape. So, our response will be unflinching, united, and proportional.”
She also said the EU would examine ways “to strengthen our security partnerships with partners such as the U.K., Canada, Norway, Iceland, and others.”
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney warned that powerful nations are using economic integration as a method of coercion and called on middle-power countries to unite.
“There is a strong tendency for countries to go along to get along,” he said. “To accommodate. To avoid trouble. To hope that compliance will buy safety. It won’t.”
Carney also reaffirmed Canada’s commitment to NATO and rejected the Trump administration’s use of tariffs over Greenland.
Speaking to reporters during a White House briefing Jan. 20, Trump said, “I think that we will work something out where NATO’s going to be very happy and where we’re going to be very happy.”
Earlier in the day, Trump said on Truth Social he had agreed to meet with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and “various parties” in Davos. He also reiterated his goal of acquiring Greenland.
“As I expressed to everyone, very plainly, Greenland is imperative for National and World Security,” Trump wrote in the post. “There can be no going back — On that, everyone agrees!”
He also reshared a Truth Social post from a user who said that “China and Russia are the boogeymen,” but the United Nations and NATO are “the real threat.”
The World Economic Forum runs through Jan. 23. According to the forum’s website, Trump is scheduled to deliver a special address Jan. 21.