The rules-based order' Davos craves has bigger problems than Trump: it represents a world that no longer exists

"Donald Trump represents everything that the Davos crowd hates and it is unlikely they are any more well-disposed towards him after being forced to listen to more than an hour of the president's rambling speech today. He is a protectionist, not a free trader. He thinks the climate crisis is a hoax and is suspicious of multilateral organisations. He prefers power plays to dialogue and he doesn't have any time for the woke capitalism that Davos has been keen to promote,"

"In today's world, Davos is an irrelevance and it seems fitting that Trump should be on hand this week to deliver the coup de grace to the liberal international rules-based order that the WEF prides itself on upholding. Emmanuel Macron, the French president, was right when he said there has been a shift to a world without rules, and there is some irony in that,"

Donald Trump embodies a nationalist, protectionist stance that clashes with Davos' globalist priorities, rejecting free trade, multilateral organisations and climate action. He favours power plays over dialogue and rejects the woke capitalism focus on gender equality and ethical investment, prompting the World Economic Forum to sideline those issues to secure his appearance. Anti-globalisation sentiment and confrontational moves, including threats like taking over Greenland, amplify Davos' waning relevance. The liberal international rules-based order is eroding, with Emmanuel Macron noting a shift toward a world without rules. The postwar liberal order largely reflected US hegemony, with NATO security guarantees and the US as consumer of last resort. Existing institutions such as the IMF and World Bank are increasingly seen as outdated.

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