Trump: I won’t use force to take Greenland
Onto Nato, Trump says “we give so much, and we get so little in return.”
Trump says the US only gets “death, disruption, and massive amounts of cash [given] to people who don’t appreciate what we do.” – and he’s taking about both Nato and Europe generally.
Trump then points out Nato chief Mark Rutte in the audience – who this morning was complimentary about Trump’s pressure to raise military spending among Nato members.
Trump then appears to state that he won’t use force to obtain Greenland.
We won’t get anything unless I use excessive strength and force, when we would be unstoppable.
I won’t use force.
Trump then claims that the US has got “nothing out of Nato”, apart from protecting Europe from Russia.
[This is, frankly, offensive. Nato’s collective defence pledge, Article 5, has only been activated once, after 9/11].
And Trump then repeats his desire to acquire Greenland.
Key events
Trump then turns to Emmanuel Macron, questioning why the French president gave a speech yesterday in some rather natty sunglasses.
[reportedly, Macron has an eye infection]
“I actually like him, it’s hard to believe,” Trump jibes, before relating how he used the threat of tariffs to persude European countries to cut the cost of prescription drugs in the US.
And in a painful moment, Trump says you can say he’s brought down drug prices by 2,000%.
The fake news, he says, might only call it a 90% reduction, but that sounds “much worse”. [although more accurate].
Trump: We will remember if you say no over Greenland
Trump then gets the verbal thumbscrews out on the global elite, as he lobbies them to let him acquire Greenland.
Capturing the ‘art of the deal’, Trump tells the World Economic Forum:
You can say yes and we will be very appreciative, or you can say no and we will remember.
In a confusing moment, Trump blames “Iceland” for the drop on the US stock market yesterday.
Trump: not sure Nato would be there for us
We’re back on Greenland now – Trump says the island can play “a vital role in world peace and world protection”.
He insists it is “a very small ask”, compared to what the US has given Nato for many decades.
And he questions the commitment of fellow Nato members to the alliance, saying:
We’re there for Nato 100%, I’m not sure if they’d be there for us.
[except they were after 9/11, Donald].
Trump tells Davos that the Russia-Ukraine war has to stop.
He says he’s dealing with Vladimir Putin, “he wants to make a deal”.
He thinks Volodymyr Zelenskyy – who he will meet later today here in Davos – also wants to make a deal.
He says:
They’ve got to get that war stopped.
Trump: I won’t use force to take Greenland
Onto Nato, Trump says “we give so much, and we get so little in return.”
Trump says the US only gets “death, disruption, and massive amounts of cash [given] to people who don’t appreciate what we do.” – and he’s taking about both Nato and Europe generally.
Trump then points out Nato chief Mark Rutte in the audience – who this morning was complimentary about Trump’s pressure to raise military spending among Nato members.
Trump then appears to state that he won’t use force to obtain Greenland.
We won’t get anything unless I use excessive strength and force, when we would be unstoppable.
I won’t use force.
Trump then claims that the US has got “nothing out of Nato”, apart from protecting Europe from Russia.
[This is, frankly, offensive. Nato’s collective defence pledge, Article 5, has only been activated once, after 9/11].
And Trump then repeats his desire to acquire Greenland.
Trump: Seeking immediate negotiations for purchase of Greenland
Here we go: Trump then tells Davos that the US are seeking “immediate negotiations” to discuss the acquisition of Greenland.
[Reminder, Denmark has said the semi-autonomous island is not for sale].
Trump: US ‘takes great care’ about the people of Europe, but they are ‘destroying themselves’
Jakub Krupa
Trump says the US “takes great care” about the people Europe, mentioning his Scottish and German heritage within family, and says “we believe deeply in bonds we share with Europe as a civilisation.”
But, BUT, he says:
“That’s why issues like energy, trade, immigration and economic growth must be central concerns to anyone who wants to see a strong and united west, because Europe and those countries have to do their thing.
They have to get out of the culture that they’ve created over the last ten years.
It’s horrible what they’re doing to themselves. They’re destroying themselves. … We want strong allies, not seriously weakened ones.”
Trump: You’d be speaking German and Japanese without us
Onto the Greenland crisis – Trump says he wondered about dropping this from his speech (but it’s the issue everyone cares about).
He starts with a relatively conciliatory tone, saying:
I have tremendous respect for the people of Greenland and the people of Denmark.
But every Nato member has an obligation to defend their own territory.
No-one can secure Greenland apart from the US, he insists.
He says the world saw this in the second world war, when “Denmark fell to Germany after six hours of fighting”.
We were then compelled to send our own forces to hold the Greenland territory, at great cost and expense, Trump says, setting up military bases on this “big beautiful piece of ice”
And lurching into language popularised by England’s football fans, Trump tells WEF that America won the second world war.
Without us, you’d be speaking German and Japanese perhaps, he declares.
After the war, we gave Greenland back to Denmark. How stupid were we to do that? How ungrateful are they now, Trump muses.
Donald Trump says “he wants the UK to do great”, before criticising Britain’s green energy strategy.
Joking that you’re “supposed to make money with energy, not lose it”, Trump is now banging on about how green energy is a fraud.
He’s criticising the decision to wind down drilling in the North Sea (part of the strategy to fight the climate emergency), saying companies have been put off from drilling through windfall taxes.
Trump then slips into a riff about China’s role in the green tech industry, saying you “never seen a wind farm in China” – they only build them as demonstrations to persuade ‘stupid people’ to buy them.
Onto Venezuela, and Trump mentions glibly that the US just picked up 50m barrels of Venezuelan oil (following the capture of its leader Nicolás Maduro).
[This is a controversial issue, though, as the oil was sold to a company whose senior oil trader donated to Donald Trump’s re-election campaign.]
“Venezuela is going to do fantastically well,” Trump promises, saying it will quickly make more money than in the last 20 years.
#Davos #live #Trump #rules #Greenland #force #calls #negotiations #Davos