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Europe
France
January 21, 2026 at 10:02 am Today, France has asked for a Nato exercise in Greenland and is ready to contribute to it: French President Macron’s office. (Source: TimesLIVE – South Africa)
European Parliament
Wed, Jan 21 2026 1:37 PM EST European lawmakers today suspended the approval of the trade deal that the European Union and U.S. agreed in July. European Parliament member Lange, chair of European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade (INTA) on EU-US trade relations, said the recent plans by President Trump to impose tariffs of between 10% and 25% on European nations was a breaking by President of the Scotland deal at Trump’s Turnberry golf resort last year. ’I guess he didn’t revise his position. He wants to have Greenland as part of the United States as quick as possible,’ Lange said. Trump ruled out the use of military force in his speech. “We will hold on the procedure ... until there is clarity regarding Greenland and the threats,” he said. Lange said Trump is using tariffs as an instrument of political pressure as a way to buy Greenland, and described the move as ’an attack against the economic and territorial sovereignty of the European Union.’ He added that INTA would on Monday discuss the use of the EU’s Anti-Coercion Instrument (ACI), which would allow the EU to substantially restrict U.S. companies’ access to its single market, block them from tenders, reduce the flow of goods and capital, and curb foreign direct investment in the bloc. Today, Nagel, Bundesbank President and a governing council member of the European Central Bank said the tariff dispute could maybe be a game changer for monetary policy in the euro zone, which he said was still on a good path. (Source: CNBC – U.S.)
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Greenland
21/01/2026 - 23:45 Greenland's government unveiled a new handbook today offering advice to the population in the event of a crisis in the territory. (Source: France 24)
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09:30 ET, 21 Jan 2026 In a video posted to TikTok that has been viewed more than 7 million times, two Greenland residents could be seen, who joked about introducing 'American culture' to the island by mimicking fentanyl addicts. Several clips showed the pair bent at the waist, slumped forward, in a rigid position with their head bowed while surrounded by heavy snow on the mineral-rich island that Trump has set his sights on. It was set to the song Fortunate Son by American rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival. Tens of thousands of comments, including many from Americans were applauding the dark joke. One even asked: "Can you guys buy America please?" (Source: The Mirror US)
World Economic Forum, Davos, Switzerland
January 21, 2026 8:05 AM. Canada’s PM Carney speech: „We are in the midst of a rupture, not a transition”. Today, I will talk about a rupture in the world order, the end of a pleasant fiction and the beginning of a harsh reality, where geopolitics, where the large, main power, geopolitics, is submitted to no limits, no constraints. On the other hand, I would like to tell you that the other countries, especially intermediate powers like Canada, are not powerless. They have the capacity to build a new order that encompasses our values, such as respect for human rights, sustainable development, solidarity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of the various states. It seems that every day we’re reminded that we live in an era of great-power rivalry, that the rules-based order is fading, that the strong can do what they can, and the weak must suffer what they must. ’For decades, countries like Canada prospered under what we called the rules-based international order. We joined its institutions, we praised its principles, we benefited from its predictability. And because of that, we could pursue values-based foreign policies under its protection. We knew the story of the international rules-based order was partially false - that the strongest would exempt themselves when convenient, that trade rules were enforced asymmetrically. And we knew that international law applied with varying rigor depending on the identity of the accused or the victim. This fiction was useful, and American hegemony, in particular, helped provide public goods, open sea lanes, a stable financial system, collective security, and support for frameworks for resolving disputes’. We participated in the rituals, and we largely avoided calling out the gaps between rhetoric and reality. This bargain no longer works. Let me be direct. We are in the midst of a rupture, not a transition. Over the past two decades, a series of crises in finance, health, energy, and geopolitics have laid bare the risks of extreme global integration. But more recently, great powers have begun using economic integration as weapons, tariffs as leverage, financial infrastructure as coercion, supply chains as vulnerabilities to be exploited - when integration becomes the source of your subordination. The multilateral institutions on which the middle powers have relied - the WTO [World Trade Organization], the U.N., the COP [the U.N. climate change conference] - the very architecture of collective problem-solving are under threat. As a result, many countries are drawing the same conclusions that they must develop greater strategic autonomy, in energy, food, critical minerals, in finance, and supply chains. When the rules no longer protect you, you must protect yourself. Allies will diversify to hedge against uncertainty. They’ll buy insurance, increase options in order to rebuild sovereignty - sovereignty that was once grounded in rules, but will increasingly be anchored in the ability to withstand pressure. This is classic risk management, which comes at a price, but that cost of strategic autonomy, of sovereignty, can also be shared. Collective investments in resilience are cheaper than everyone building their own fortresses. Shared standards reduce fragmentations. The question is whether we adapt by simply building higher walls, or whether we can do something more ambitious. Canadians know that our old comfortable assumptions that our geography and alliance memberships automatically conferred prosperity and security - that assumption is no longer valid. ’We aim to be both principled and pragmatic - principled in our commitment to fundamental values: sovereignty; territorial integrity; the prohibition of the use of force, except when consistent with the UN Charter; and respect for human rights, and pragmatic in recognizing that progress is often incremental, that interests diverge, that not every partner will share all of our values’. ’And we are no longer just relying on the strength of our values, but also the value of our strength’. We are building that strength at home. We have cut taxes on incomes, on capital gains and business investment. We have removed all federal barriers to interprovincial trade. We are fast-tracking a trillion dollars of investments in energy, AI [artificial intelligence], critical minerals, new trade corridors, and beyond. We’re doubling our defense spending by the end of this decade, and we’re doing so in ways that build our domestic industries. We have agreed a comprehensive strategic partnership with the EU, including joining SAFE [Security Action for Europe], the European defense procurement arrangements. We have signed 12 other trade and security deals on four continents in six months. The past few days, we’ve concluded new strategic partnerships with China and Qatar. We’re negotiating free trade pacts with India, ASEAN [the Association of Southeast Asian Nations], Thailand, Philippines, and Mercosur. To help solve global problems, we’re pursuing variable geometry - in other words, different coalitions for different issues based on common values and interests. So, on Ukraine, we’re a core member of the Coalition of the Willing and one of the largest per capita contributors to its defense and security. On Arctic sovereignty, we stand firmly with Greenland and Denmark and fully support their unique right to determine Greenland’s future. Our commitment to NATO’s Article 5 is unwavering. We’re working with our NATO allies, including the Nordic Baltic Gate, to further secure the alliance’s northern and western flanks, including through Canada’s unprecedented investments in over-the-horizon radar, in submarines, in aircraft, and boots on the ground, boots on the ice. Canada strongly opposes tariffs over Greenland. We’re championing efforts to build a bridge between the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the European Union, which would create a new trading bloc of 1.5 billion people. On critical minerals, we’re forming buyers’ clubs anchored in the G-7. On AI, we’re cooperating with like-minded democracies to ensure that we won’t ultimately be forced to choose between hegemons and hyper-scalers. It’s building coalitions that work, creating a dense web of connections across trade, investment, culture. In a world of great-power rivalry, the countries in between have a choice - compete with each other for favor, or combine to create a third path with impact. The middle powers must act together, because if we’re not at the table, we’re on the menu. (Source: Foreign Policy – U.S.)
January 21, 2026 4:00pm EST U.S. President Trump unloads on Biden policies from Davos. Trump is in Switzerland today and tomorrow for the annual World Economic Forum. He threatens to impose tariffs on a handful of European nations in an effort for the U.S. to acquire Greenland, heightening tensions at the forum. Trump blasted his predecessor's policies at the Forum in a warning to foreign leaders to buck old political playbooks and rally around the U.S. He was highlighting how his administration overturned Biden's left-wing policies as they relate to energy and the economy and immigration to strengthen the U.S. ’It became conventional wisdom in Washington and European capitals that the only way to grow a modern Western economy was through ever-increasing government spending, unchecked mass migration, and endless foreign imports," Trump said. 'The consensus was that so-called dirty jobs and heavy industries should be sent elsewhere, that affordable energy should be replaced by the Green New scam, and that countries could be propped up by importing new and entirely different populations from faraway lands.’ ’This was the path that Sleepy Biden's administration and many other Western governments very foolishly followed’, turning their backs on everything that makes nations rich and powerful and strong, he added. Trump also scolded European leaders for transforming the continent into one he no longer recognizes, calling on them to set itself on the right direction. "And I love Europe and I want to see Europe go good, but it's not heading in the right direction," he said. (Source: Fox News – U.S.)
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21/01/2026 - 21:49 U.S.. Trump cancelled his tariff threat on several European nations after coming to terms on a “framework of a future deal” on Arctic security. NATO chief Rutte may 'have just explained to Trump the existing rights that the US has in Greenland and sold this to Trump as something new'. (Source: France 24)
Wednesday 21 January 2026 at 8:36pm U.S.. Points from Trump's Davos speech. He has said he would not use force to acquire Greenland. ’We probably won’t get anything unless I decide to use excessive strength and force, where we would be, frankly, unstoppable,’ Trump said. “But I won’t do that." ’I don’t have to use force. I don’t want to use force. I won’t use force,” Trump added. Speaking for more than an hour, Trump criticised European leaders and celebrated America's finances and living standards, which he said were achieved against expectations. He reiterated his demands for control of Greenland and called for immediate negotiations with European allies. For the first time, the US president said he would not use force to acquire Greenland. Trump also repeated that the US returned Greenland to Denmark after the Second World War. The US did set up military bases in Greenland via a wartime security agreement with Denmark during the Second World War. It didn’t confer any actual ownership. Trump questioned Nato's commitment to the US, saying: ’We give so much, and we get so little in return." "They don't appreciate what we do. Talking about Nato, I'm talking about Europe." Trump argued that US control of Greenland ’would greatly enhance the security of the entire alliance, the NATO alliance.’ European leaders have largely criticised Trump's plan to introduce a 10% tariff on any and all goods sent from eight EU countries to the US from February 1. This is set to increase to 25% from June 1 until a deal is reached. The EU is considering a package of retaliatory tariffs worth around £80 billion in response to Trump's plans. Trump who has repeatedly denounced what he calls the green energy ’scam’, used his speech to criticise Starmer’s policies on North Sea oil and gas. He said the UK Government had made it “impossible” for oil firms to exploit North Sea reserves. "The United Kingdom produces just one-third of the total energy from all sources that it did in 1999," he said. „And they're sitting on top of the North Sea, one of the greatest reserves anywhere in the world, but they don't use it’. Trump also criticised the UK and Europe's use of wind farms, claiming that China profits from selling wind turbines, which he stated were for ’stupid people.’(Source: ITV – United Kingdom)
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January 21, 2026 8:05 AM U.S. ‘A Rupture in the World Order’. "The world leaders, gathered for the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, this week are facing a stark and disorienting reality: The United States under President Trump is no longer a reliable or predictable ally. From wielding economy-upending tariffs like a cudgel against nearly every country in the world, to using the U.S. military to overthrow the leader of a sovereign country without bothering to seek authorization at home or abroad, to threatening to seize the territory of some of the United States’ closest friends and allies, Trump has brazenly discarded the old rule book to pursue what he has called an “America First” agenda". In a speech at Davos yesterday Carney of Canada 'laid out his vision for how to push back against Trump’s chaos'. (Source: Foreign Policy – U.S.)
By Williams, a deputy editor at Foreign Policy
Jan 21, 2026 - 20:51 US President Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform: We have formed the framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland and, in fact, the entire Arctic Region, US. He made the turnaround after talks with NATO Secretary-General Rutte. Trump offered few details. He backed down both on threats to seize the island by force from Denmark and on imposing tariffs against European allies. “It’s a deal that people jumped at, really fantastic for the USA, gets everything we wanted.’ The deal will be in force forever, he later told reporters. (Source: Euractiv – Brussels, Belgium)
21/01/2026 - 20:27 U.S. President Trump insisted he wants to get Greenland, including right, title and ownership, but he wouldn’t employ force to achieve that. Trump was using his speech to vow that NATO shouldn’t stand in the way of U.S. expansionism. (Source: France 24)
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January 21, 2026, 12:32 PM United States’ Trump follows Greenland threats by announcing a “future deal.” After reading out a long speech from a teleprompter that listed out various domestic accomplishments without once mentioning his recent threats against Denmark, U.S. President Trump, ever the showman, realized what the hundreds of diplomats, world leaders, and businesspeople had gathered in the room to hear. “Would you like me to say a few words of Greenland?” he asked. “I’m seeking immediate negotiations to discuss the acquisition of Greenland,’ he announced, even as he admitted he didn’t plan to use force. ’All we’re asking for in Greenland is right, title, and ownership. … You can say yes, and we will be very appreciative. You can say no, and we will remember.” Hours later: Truth Social: Trump announced a “future deal with respect to Greenland” but held back on details, except to say the expected Feb. 1 tariffs would no longer be imposed. For all the summit’s carefully crafted sessions on topics such as AI, the economy, and critical minerals, the U.S. president had turned into a real, live, international crisis. Over the weekend, he announced tariffs on Denmark and seven other European countries for not supporting his bid to take over Greenland. He was now deploying economic warfare to pressure Europe to give in. Commerce Secretary Lutnick, a parade of other cabinet members and Trump delegates spoke on TV and on stage ahead of the president’s arrival today without saying anything about what the White House’s plan actually was. Today at 2:30 p.m. local time, thousands of Davos delegates filed in a darkened room, into the main Congress Hall - and several overflow rooms - to hear Trump live and in person. Trump is shown standing at a lectern on a large screen. After more than 30 minutes of scripted remarks, finally came Trump’s comments on Europe, which were pockmarked with misinformation. The United States was virtually paying for 100 percent of NATO, he said. “What we’ve gotten from NATO is nothing’. ’I know we’ll be there for them. I don’t know if they’ll be there for us.” Trump didn’t care for history - unless he could twist it to serve his purpose. He cited instead the end of World War II and described how the United States saved Europe - and Greenland - from the Axis powers, ignoring the contributions of other great powers, including the Soviet Union, China, and an array of then-colonized countries. ’We literally set up bases on Greenland for Denmark. How stupid were we to give Greenland back. How ungrateful are they now!’ Trump said. Trump, already playing bully, has his eyes on the leaders who are meeting his threats with tough words. “Emmanuel, I watched your speech,’ he said disapprovingly, remarking to France’s president Macron, who yesterday had reiterated the importance of sovereignty. He was sterner still with the other speaking star of the week. “Canada … I watched your prime minister,” Trump said referring to Carney. “The next time you speak, Mark, watch yourself.’ Trump ’was rambling and bullying of his country’s closest allies, heralding an era of jungle law’, where the biggest power can have its way with smaller economies. The U.S. president seems to only just be discovering the extent of American power. In sharp contrast lies Carney’s exposition of the dangers of a world where might makes right. Carney pointed to how international order, based on rules needed nurturing and not destroying - order, ’that encompasses our values, such as respect for human rights, sustainable development, solidarity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.’ The powerful have their power. But we have something, too - the capacity to stop pretending, to name reality, to build our strength at home, and to act together. This is Canada’s path, he added. Carney’s speech came on the heels of a closely watched visit to China, a relationship that he described as recalibrating just one year after calling Beijing the biggest security threat facing Ottawa. (Source: Foreign Policy – U.S.)
By Agrawal, the editor in chief of Foreign Policy.
Jan. 21, 2026 US President Trump participates in a Reception with Business Leaders (Source: YouTube / The White House = U.S.)
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Jan. 21, 2026 US President Trump delivers a Special Address to the World Economic Forum. (Source: YouTube / The White House = U.S.)
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North America
United States
January 21, 2026 at 10:15 am In Davos US President Trump is expected to escalate his push for acquiring Greenland Trump marked the end of his turbulent first year in office yesterday. He expected to overshadow the gathering used by global elite to discuss economic trends. (Source: TimesLIVE – South Africa)
January 21, 2026 03:49 As a future home for the golden dome missile defense system - President Trump’s efforts to have to U.S. take control of Greenland for national security reasons, (Source: Fox News – U.S.)
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January 21, 2026 3:02 AM If anything were to happen to him wipe the Iranian regime ’off the face of this Earth’: U.S. President Trump. (Source: Miami Herald / Newsweek = U.S.)
January 21, 2026 7:41am Year 1917: the US recognise the sovereignty of Denmark over Greenland. In 1917, the US paid some $25,000,000 for the US Virgin Islands, which were previously owned by Denmark. Part of the deal saw the US agree to recognise the sovereignty of Denmark over Greenland. Under a little-known Cold War agreement, the US built the military base Thule Air Base in a remote corner of Greenland. (Source: Metro – United Kingdom)
Tuesday 20 January 2026 at 11:01pm Trump spoke on his relationship with Europe as he celebrated his first year in power. (Source: ITV – United Kingdom)
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Globalization
World Economic Forum, Davos, Switzerland, Wednesday 21 January 2026 07:42 GMT Strong concerns over the Greenland crisis and escalating global trade tensions. The gathering comes as Trump continues to advocate for the acquisition of Greenland and the imposition of related trade tariffs. European leaders issued stark warnings. Belgian prime minister Bart De Wever expressed profound concern over Trump’s Greenland provocations, stating that so many red lines have been crossed in Europe. He warned against complacency, declaring: "Being a happy vassal is one thing. Being a miserable slave is something else. If you back down now you’re going to lose your dignity.’ De Wever confirmed that he and Belgium’s King Philippe would meet with Trump to advocate for a return to the traditional military alliance between Brussels and Washington. He cautioned: ’We either stand together or we will stand divided, and if we are divided, there is the end of an era, of 80 years of Atlanticism, really drawing to a close." Quoting Italian philosopher Gramsci, De Wever suggested that in this period of significant transformation, it is up to Trump to decide the fate of the alliance: "It’s up to him (Trump) to decide if he wants to be a monster - yes or no.’ He accused Trump of not behaving like an ally, adding: “My feeling is that the sweet-talking is over. You reach the point where sweet-talking and sweet-talking is counterproductive. It only encourages them to go a step further – it’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar.’ De Wever referred to a famed children’s picture book by Carle about an insect that eats too much food. French President Macron, sporting aviator sunglasses, cautioned against ’a new colonial approach’ that he argued would dismantle decades of international cooperation. He warned major powers against the allure of modern colonial ambitions. Macron declared: ’It’s a shift towards a world without rules. Where international law is trampled underfoot and where the only law that seems to matter is that of the strongest, and imperial ambitions are resurfacing.’ He then directly criticised the Trump administration, denouncing ’competition from the United States of America, through trade agreements that undermine our export interests, demand maximum concessions, and openly aim to weaken and subordinate Europe, combined with an endless accumulation of new tariffs that are fundamentally unacceptable, even more so when they are used as leverage against territorial sovereignty.' European Commission President der Leyen criticised the proposed additional tariffs as ’a mistake, especially between long-standing allies,’ reminding attendees that the European Union and the United States have agreed to a trade deal last July. It is time to seize this opportunity and build a new independent Europe, she asserted. Plunging us into a downward spiral would only aid the very adversaries we are both so committed to keeping out of the strategic landscape, she concluded. Canada Prime Minister Mark Carney took part in an event tilted ‘Country Strategy Dialogue: Canada’. The former central banker highlighted the vulnerability of smaller nations in the face of powerful states. Carney urged nations outside the top tier of global power to maintain multilateral cooperation, to combine to create a third path with impact through a new, dense web of connections. He firmly opposed US aspirations in the Arctic, stating: "We stand firmly with Greenland and Denmark and fully support their unique right to determine Greenland’s future." Carney received standing ovation after warning of global rupture amid Trump tensions. California Governor Newsom delivered expletive-laden rebukes as discussions were dominated by the Greenland crisis. In the forum’s entrance hall, he was particularly ’outspoken’, telling European leaders: ’It’s time to get serious and stop being complicit. It’s time to stand tall and firm – have a backbone." ’I should’ve brought a bunch of knee pads for all the world leaders" the Democrat was stating. ’Stop with this (expletive) diplomacy of sort of niceties and somehow we’re all going to figure it out, saying one thing privately and another publicly. Have some spine, some goddamn (expletive).’ ’I hope people understand how pathetic they look on the world stage. I mean, at least from an American perspective, it’s embarrassing,' he added. With Trump scheduled to address the forum later in the week, Treasury secretary Bessent sought to defend the administration’s stance. He downplayed the growing rift among Western nations over Greenland. ’I think our relations have never been closer, ’ Bessent was asserting and urged attendees to ’calm down the hysteria.’ He added: ’We are in the middle of President Trump’s policies. And of course, Europe is an ally, the U.S.-NATO membership is unquestioned. We are partners in trying to stop this tragic war between Russia and Ukraine, but that does not mean that we cannot have disagreements on the future of Greenland.’ (Source: The Independent - United Kingdom)
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