U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday (Jan. 21) canceled the tariffs that he had threatened to impose on eight European nations to press for U.S. control over Greenland.
“What I’m asking for is a piece of ice, cold and poorly located, that can play a vital role in World Peace and world protection,” Trump told the audience at the World Economic Forum in Davos Switzerland. “It’s a very small ask, compared to what we have given them for many, many decades.”
After his meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Ruta in Davos, he said he has formed the ultimate long-term deal on Greenland, framing the island’s acquisition as an urgent issue of national security.
“Greenland is a vast, almost entirely uninhabited and undeveloped territory, the sitting undefended in a key strategic location between the United States, Russia and China that will make it impossible for the bad guys to do anything against the perceived good ones.”
While he says he would not use force to take the island, he blasted Denmark for insufficient military spending on Greenland and extols the singular strength of the U.S. military.
He recounted the capture of former Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro in Operation Absolute Resolve, saying the Venezuelan regime encountered weapons they had never heard of.
“Everything was discombobulated,” Trump told the audience. “Those defensive systems were made by Russia and by China. So they’re going to go back to the drawing boards.”
Trump’s argument goes beyond the armed forces.
He said the U.S. is the only country with the power to stand up to sophisticated forms of subversion and restore the integrity of free nations.
Calling the West’s shared culture a precious inheritance, he blasted Europe for its immigration and energy policies, which he said led to vulnerability to hostile foreign adversaries and smaller militaries.
“The United States is keeping the whole world afloat. Without us, it’s not Switzerland anymore. Without us, it’s not any of the countries that are represented here. Without us, most of the countries don’t even work. They’re destroying themselves—its beautiful, beautiful places.”
“We want strong allies, not seriously weakened ones,” Trump added.
He urged the world leaders in Davos to seize the special time now to restore and defend cherished national liberties, and build a viable future before it is too late.
The White House called Trump’s address a vision of transatlantic strength.
“We have to defend that culture and rediscover the spirit that lifted the West from the depths of the Dark Ages to the pinnacle of human achievement,” he said.
“We live in a incredible changing period. We have to take advantage of the time that we’re in.”
