‘If I didn’t come along, there would be no … ‘: Trump takes credit for Nato’s existence as Europe bristles over Greenland
US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Nato continued to exist thanks to him, as European leaders meeting in Davos vowed an “unflinching” response to his threats to take over Greenland.In a post on Truth Social, Trump said if he were not there, the Nato would have been in the ash heap of History. “No single person, or President, has done more for Nato than President Donald J. Trump. If I didn’t come along, there would be no Nato right now!!! It would have been in the ash heap of History. Sad, but TRUE!!! President DJT,” Trump said. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen vowed an “unflinching” response to US President Donald Trump’s threats over Greenland, as Trump said he was ready to hold a meeting in Davos about the Arctic island.In a speech to the World Economic Forum in the Swiss ski resort of Davos, von der Leyen warned that Trump risked plunging US ties with the European Union into a “downward spiral” over the autonomous Danish territory.Trump, who will address the annual gathering of global elites on Wednesday, put the transatlantic alliance to the test with his demand to take over Greenland.Europe weighed countermeasures after the US President threatened to impose tariffs on eight European countries over the Greenland standoff, although Washington said any retaliatory levies would be “unwise”.“The proposed additional tariffs are a mistake, especially between long-standing allies,” von der Leyen told the meeting of world business and political leaders.“Plunging us into a downward spiral would only aid the very adversaries we are both so committed to keeping out of the strategic landscape. So our response will be unflinching, united and proportional,” she said.Europe “must respond” to any trade war, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen later told her parliament, adding: “We are compelled to do so”.Trump pressed on with his Greenland campaign on his Truth Social platform, posting a fake photo of himself planting a flag in a landscape of rock and ice next to a sign reading “GREENLAND — US TERRITORY EST. 2026”.He later wrote he had had a “very good” call with Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte over mineral-rich Greenland.“I agreed to a meeting of the various parties in Davos, Switzerland,” he said late on Monday, after telling reporters he did not think European leaders would “push back too much” on his attempt to buy the vast island.Trump argued he wanted to protect Greenland from perceived Russian and Chinese threats, although analysts suggested Beijing was a small player in the region.EU leaders will hold an emergency summit on Greenland in Brussels on Thursday.
