President Donald Trump used a high-profile appearance at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum to deliver a confrontational speech that mixed warnings to allies, intense criticism of Europe, renewed interest in acquiring Greenland and inflammatory remarks about immigrants.
Speaking before foreign dignitaries and corporate executives in Davos, Switzerland, Trump returned to themes that have defined both of his administrations.
“It’s great to be back in beautiful Davos, Switzerland, and to address so many respected business leaders, so many friends, few enemies,” Trump said. He quickly turned to Europe, saying parts of the continent were “not even recognizable, frankly, anymore,” and added that the changes were “not in a positive way. That’s in a very negative way.” While saying he loved Europe and wanted it to succeed, Trump warned that it was “not heading in the right direction.”
Trump then shifted to security and territorial ambitions, describing Greenland as “this enormous unsecured island” and calling it a core U.S. national security interest. “It is therefore a core national security interest of the United States of America,” he said, arguing that only the U.S. could protect and develop the territory in ways that would benefit both Europe and America.
He said he was “seeking immediate negotiations to once again discuss the acquisition of Greenland by the United States,” while insisting, “I don’t want to use force. I won’t use force.”
Alliances were another focus, as Trump questioned NATO’s reliability.
“We’ll be there for them 100%,” he said, but added that he was not sure allies would come to the U.S.’s defense if it were attacked. He also criticized Canada, saying a planned U.S. missile defense system would protect the country as well. “Canada gets a lot of freebies from us,” Trump said. “Canada lives because of the United States.”
The speech also included remarks about immigration that drew immediate attention. Trump alluded to an ongoing fraud case in Minnesota involving dozens of Somali residents and used it to launch into sweeping attacks on African migrants. “Can you believe that? Somalia, they turned out to be higher IQ than we thought,” Trump said. “I always say these are low IQ people. How do they go into Minnesota and steal all that money?”
Trump’s words in Davos recalled earlier controversies, including a closed-door meeting in 2018 in which he questioned why the United States accepted immigrants from what he called “shithole countries” such as Haiti, El Salvador and several African nations. During a 2024 presidential debate, he repeated debunked claims that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, were eating people’s pets and said they were “destroying” the city.
Many attributed Trump’s remarks to White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, who is widely seen as the driving force behind Trump’s aggressively hostile stance on race and immigration.
