‘I won’t use force’ and other key quotes from Trump’s Davos speech
WASHINGTON— President Trump delivered a harsh criticism of U.S. allies and rivals in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland on Wednesday, questioning Europe’s political direction, belittling the credibility of NATO and reiterating his intention to seize Greenland.
Speaking before an audience of global political and business leaders, Trump said European countries were “not moving in the right direction” in part because of what he called bad immigration policies, while asserting that the United States was a “great power” that needed to own Greenland outright to be able to properly defend itself.
His remarks echoed long-standing complaints that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was taking advantage of the United States and questioned whether allied countries would support the United States if the country needed it.
Here are some of Trump’s notable statements:
Renewed demands for Greenland: “It is only the United States that can protect, develop and improve this giant mass of land, this giant piece of ice, and do it in a way that is good for Europe, safe for Europe and good for us. That is why I am seeking urgent negotiations to once again discuss the acquisition of Greenland by the United States. Just as we have acquired many other territories throughout our history.”
Military occupation rejected: “We didn’t ask for anything and we didn’t get anything, obviously we probably won’t get anything unless I decide to use extreme force and force where we’re going to be unstoppable, but I’m not going to do that, okay? That’s probably the biggest statement I’ve ever made because people thought I was going to use force. I don’t want to use force. I don’t want to use force. I’m not going to use force.”
Full ownership sought: “All we want is to get Greenland, including rights, title, and ownership, because you need property to defend it. You can’t defend it with a lease. No. 1, it’s completely indefensible legally. And psychologically, No. 2.”
About European immigration: “Some parts of Europe are not recognized. Frankly, they are not recognized. We can argue, but there is no debate. Friends come from different places, I don’t want to insult anyone, they say ‘I don’t know’. And this is not in a positive way. This is in a very negative way. I want to see Europe getting better, but it is not moving in the right direction.”
US power: “The United States keeps the whole world afloat. Without us, most countries wouldn’t even function. You also have a protection factor. If we didn’t have an army – which is by far the largest in the world – if we didn’t have an army, you’d face threats you wouldn’t believe. Thanks to us, you don’t have threats, and that’s because of NATO.”
On the impact of World War II: “We won a great victory after the war we won. If it weren’t for us, maybe you would all be speaking German and a little Japanese right now.”
On trusting NATO: “The problem with NATO is that we’re 100% on their side. But if we call them, I’m not sure they’ll be there for us. … I’m not sure they’ll be there. I know we’ll be there for them. I don’t know that they’ll be there for us. For all the money, blood, sweat and tears we’ve spent, I don’t know that they’ll be there for us.”
Confusing Greenland with Iceland: “I can say that they were not there for us in Iceland. I mean, our stock market had its first drop yesterday because of Iceland. So Iceland has already cost us a lot.”
Greetings from California Governor Gavin Newsom in the forum): “We’re going to help people in California. We don’t want to commit any crimes. I know Gavin is here. I got along very well with Gavin when I was president. Gavin’s a good guy. And if you needed me, I’d do it right away. We helped them a lot in Los Angeles, very early in my term, when they had some problems. But we’d love to do that. I can say this, if I were a Democratic governor, I’d call Trump. I’d say come on.” Come in, make us look good, because we’re bringing crime down to zero and we’re only throwing out people who are going to do bad things – career criminals – and we’re bringing them back to their countries.
