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Donald Trump’s return to the global stage has reshaped Davos — but not around Ukraine, Gaza or the fragile global economy. Instead, Trump’s obsession with Greenland has hijacked the World Economic Forum, unsettling Europe, cracking NATO unity and handing Vladimir Putin a strategic distraction.
In this APT Opinion episode, we break down how Trump’s Arctic ambitions, Nobel fixation and confrontational diplomacy are shifting global focus away from war zones and toward an unprecedented intra-NATO crisis — one that Russia is quietly benefiting from. As Europe scrambles, China calculates and Ukraine burns, Putin watches the West lose focus.
Is Greenland becoming the world’s newest geopolitical flashpoint? And is Trump rewriting global priorities in Putin’s favour?
00:00You would have thought Zelensky would be the talk of the town when world leaders landed in Davos.
00:06War in Ukraine, Middle East unstable, global economy wobbling.
00:11But no.
00:13The man who hijacked Davos wasn't Volodymyr Zelensky.
00:18It wasn't Vladimir Putin.
00:20It wasn't Xi Jinping.
00:22It was Donald J. Trump and his obsession with Greenland.
00:30You know what I'm saying, don't you?
00:38Europe is no longer talking about Ukraine.
00:41Europe is no longer talking about Gaza.
00:44Europe is no longer talking about Venezuela.
00:46The only thing Europe is talking about is defending Greenland from a hostile takeover by its own ally.
00:55Yes, the United States of America.
00:58Yesterday, a Danish military plane landed in Greenland carrying Denmark's top defense officials, including Major General Peter H.
01:06Boysen himself.
01:08You know what that means.
01:10A NATO country is now deploying its top army official in a tactic aimed at defending its own territory from another NATO country, from the United States.
01:20Who would have thought two weeks ago that we would be seeing this unfold in real time?
01:26You would have laughed, right?
01:28Absurd.
01:29Completely unthinkable.
01:31Or maybe.
01:32Maybe it's just the inevitable result of putting the world's biggest ego back in the Oval Office.
01:39Because everyone knows, Donald Trump does not do subtle.
01:43He does not do diplomacy.
01:45He does not do restraint.
01:47He does domination.
01:48And now he's made it more than clear.
01:52Peace is no longer his priority.
01:54And this is a man who just a few months ago was positioning himself as the president of peace.
02:00Remember, I'm the president of peace.
02:02In an extraordinary letter dated 19th of January, Trump wrote directly to Norway's prime minister,
02:08linking his Greenland mission to his failure to win the Nobel Peace Prize.
02:15Trump says,
02:16The Nobel Committee's rejection has freed him from the obligation to think only about peace.
02:22I'm going to quote the exact line.
02:25Considering your country chose not to award me the Nobel Peace Prize for halting eight wars and more,
02:31I no longer feel beholden to think solely about peace.
02:35I can now consider what is beneficial and right for the United States.
02:40Translation.
02:42No Nobel.
02:43No peace.
02:44No restraint.
02:46This letter was quietly circulated to European ambassadors in Washington
02:50by U.S. National Security Council staff,
02:54effectively broadcasting Trump's new doctrine to America's allies.
02:59You didn't crown me?
03:01I stopped playing nice.
03:02Maybe part of that not playing nice is taking someone else's Nobel.
03:08I'm sure you remember how furious Trump was that the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize
03:13went to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado instead of him.
03:19Trump got Maduro out but didn't put Machado in his place.
03:23Message received, I guess, because within days, Machado was at the White House,
03:27handing over her Nobel Medal to Trump, which he accepted despite Nobel rules banning transfers.
03:35Who cares, right?
03:36Trump may have wanted recognition from the Nobel Committee,
03:39but he's certainly not going to recognize their rules.
03:42And this holds for every single global institution.
03:46Then came the leaked messages.
03:50Trump posted screenshots of private messages from NATO Secretary General Marc Routet
03:55and French President Emmanuel Macron related to Trump's Greenland plans.
04:00You've probably already seen Macron's message.
04:03My friend, we are totally in line on Syria.
04:05We can do great things on Iran.
04:08I do not understand what you are doing on Greenland.
04:12Wow.
04:13Trump posted that.
04:15Along with an AI-generated image of himself towering over European leaders
04:19with the American flag superimposed over Greenland.
04:24Subtle as a sledgehammer.
04:27Forget about burning bridges.
04:28This is burning the bridge and scorching the earth and salting the ruins after that.
04:33But you know who is loving every single second?
04:38Vladimir Putin.
04:39Putin's spokesperson has suggested that annexing Greenland would secure Trump
04:44a permanent place in world history.
04:47Not American history.
04:49World history.
04:50Music to Trump's ears.
04:52There is a very good reason why Russia would want to add fuel to Trump's Greenland fantasy.
04:58Because while all of this theater plays out,
05:01Zelensky is screaming into the void.
05:05He's been warning of a massive Russian strike.
05:07He's asking Europe to keep its eyes on Ukraine.
05:11But Europe?
05:12Europe is too busy watching Trump redraw the map of the Arctic.
05:17Trump says Denmark can't protect Greenland.
05:20Trump says history gives America the right to take it.
05:24Trump says NATO exists because of him.
05:26Trump says if the US doesn't take Greenland, Russia or China will.
05:32Russia is only too happy to play along with that narrative for the moment.
05:37Because Western attention on Greenland means less focus on Ukraine.
05:42And trying to handle Donald Trump makes Putin look like an angel in comparison.
05:46At least he hasn't leaked any panicky text messages.
05:50So that's Russia.
05:52What about China?
05:53The other bogey that Donald Trump is raising.
05:56China's response on Greenland has been sharp and swift.
06:01Stop using China as an excuse to grab other people's land.
06:05But the real subtext here is
06:07the unique power equation that's developed between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping.
06:12Since Trump returned to office,
06:14there have been very, very few instances where he's had to make concessions.
06:19And in the months of confrontation with China,
06:22Xi Jinping has made Donald Trump back down.
06:25Not once, but twice.
06:28When China dumped US treasuries,
06:30Trump froze his tariffs.
06:31When China restricted rare earths,
06:34Trump flew to meet Xi.
06:35So maybe it's not as simple and linear as that,
06:40but the pattern is pretty clear.
06:43Everyone else gets threats.
06:45China gets negotiations.
06:47And now, while Trump destabilizes Europe,
06:50Canada is benefiting too.
06:52Not as overtly as Russia with its Ukraine focus,
06:56but substantially.
06:57The UK government has just approved China's super embassy in London.
07:01And look at the landmark trade deal China just signed with Canada.
07:06Tariffs cut, barriers removed,
07:08strategic partnership, visa-free travel.
07:11A few weeks ago,
07:12Canada was sending the US 70% of its exports.
07:15Today, Carney is making deals with the country
07:17he once called Canada's biggest security threat.
07:21China is literally making money off Trump's foreign policy.
07:25So here we are.
07:27Ukraine is burning.
07:28The Middle East is boiling.
07:30The Arctic is militarizing.
07:33NATO is cracking.
07:35Europe is confused.
07:36China is calculating.
07:38Russia is smiling.
07:40And Donald Trump?
07:41He is chasing a Nobel Prize with an aircraft carrier.
07:45This is APT Opinion.
07:47Give me yours in the comments.
07:49And hit the join button to become an APT member.
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