Trump Clashes With Allies at Davos Over Greenland and the Global Order

President Donald Trump reaffirmed his desire for the United States to acquire Greenland during the World Economic Forum, though he stated he would not resort to using force.

Following his remarks, Trump claimed on social media that a "framework for a future deal" has been established regarding Greenland and the entire Arctic region. The statements have deepened the rift between Washington and its longtime allies.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau delivered a pointed critique, arguing that the global order established by the U.S. is currently in a state of collapse. Trudeau recently signed an economic pact with China, labeling Beijing a more dependable partner than the U.S. amid heightening trade frictions.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also joined the chorus of criticism against Trump’s diplomatic approach.

Trump further dismissed the value of the NATO alliance, claiming the United States has received nothing in return for its participation. While historical facts contradict his assertion, the president’s rhetoric aligns with his broader "America First" agenda.

Political analysts suggest that Trump’s policies are effectively dismantling the liberal international order that the U.S. spent decades building.

The Greenland controversy is no mere diplomatic whim; it is the most visible symptom of a tectonic shift in U.S. foreign policy under the second Trump administration. This movement represents a clean break from nearly 80 years of bipartisan consensus—a tradition long anchored in military alliances and the principles of free trade. The Trumpian worldview, which frames allies as economic burdens and international institutions as strategic constraints, is no longer just rhetoric; it has been codified into statecraft.

What is most striking is the evolution from the relative isolationism of the first term toward a more aggressive, transactional unilateralism. Rather than simply retreating from global entanglements, Washington is now demonstrating a willingness to weaponize military and economic leverage against its closest partners, from Denmark to Canada.

The consequences of this friction are already manifesting. Canada’s recent outreach to China for an electric vehicle (EV) agreement, following the imposition of U.S. tariffs, underscores a new reality: America’s allies are no longer waiting for a return to normalcy. Instead, they are aggressively diversifying their strategic portfolios. This shift is fueling a fragmented geopolitical landscape where traditional loyalties are eroding and new power blocs are beginning to coalesce. The U.S.-dominated global order is reaching its twilight—not because of a decline in American material power, but because the United States has fundamentally decided to abdicate its role as the global hegemon.

While macro-level foreign policy may not have a direct or immediate impact on the day-to-day concerns of the Vietnamese-American community—such as the success of phở restaurants and the nail salon industry in Little Saigon, the flow of remittances, or the processing of F2B, H-1B, TPS, and EB-5 visas—instability in global alliances can trigger long-term economic shifts. These fluctuations eventually ripple through the broader business landscape, indirectly affecting the financial environment in which our community operates.