The US-Europe standoff reaches Davos, set to hold a critical meeting on Greenland

"The world is witnessing the death of an era, one that was to a large extent embodied and symbolized by the World Economic Forum in Davos. It was a time of free trade, borderless investment, democratic expansion, cosmopolitanism, and alliance among Atlantic democracies. Another era is now taking hold the antithesis of that one: trade and financial fragmentation, democratic backsliding, nationalism, and a dramatic unraveling of the transatlantic relationship."

"The U.S. president will meet at the forum with several of the traditional Atlantic allies with whom he is now engaged in an extremely tense standoff, one of the defining features of this new era. U.S. threats to take control of Greenland the easy way or the hard have pushed the transatlantic relationship to its lowest point since at least the Suez crisis."

"Trump has said on his social media platform that, after holding a phone call with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, he expects to convene a meeting in Davos with representatives of several countries to discuss Greenland. For days, European leaders have been shaping a forceful response to the U.S. decision to impose new tariffs on countries that have shown solidarity with Greenland, and the risk of escalation is very high."

"U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Monday in Davos that proceeding with such retaliation would be very unwise and stressed that Trump's words must be taken seriously. The president made his position clear by posting an image showing himself planting the U.S. flag on Greenlandic territory, in a piece of imagery reminiscent of the iconic photograph from Iwo Jima, and a sign reading: U.S. territory est. 2026."

The Davos-era international order grounded in free trade, borderless investment, democratic expansion, cosmopolitanism, and Atlantic alliance is eroding. A contrasting era characterized by trade and financial fragmentation, nationalist politics, and democratic backsliding is taking hold, straining transatlantic relations. The World Economic Forum gathering reflects these tensions as leaders, including Donald Trump, confront a tense standoff over Greenland. U.S. threats and new tariffs on countries siding with Greenland have pushed relations to post-Suez lows, prompted plans for European retaliation, and drawn stern warnings from U.S. officials about the high risk of escalation and symbolic provocation.

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