We do prefer respect to bullies, Macron says at Davos

Europe “should not hesitate to deploy” tools at its disposal to protect its interests, French President Emmanuel Macron said in his address at the World Economic Forum on Tuesday, amid diplomatic fallout from private messages made public and escalating trade threats from Donald Trump in the run-up to the US president’s own highly anticipated speech.

The French president, wearing aviator glasses in front of an audience eager to hear his take, denounced the US competition stating it aims to “subordinate Europe”.

“Europe clearly has to fix its key issues,” he emphasised in a strongly-worded message to the continent, pushing for greater innovation and private investment across key sectors.

While he did not directly address Trump, Macron did not completely shy away from the subject either.

He opened his speech by saying, “It’s time of peace, stability and predictablilty,” to considerable laughter in the room. Yet we have approached “instability and imbalance,” Macron added, stating that “conflict has become normalised.”

Then came the indirect potshot at Trump: while pointing out that 2025 was plagued by dozens of wars, the French president said, “I hear some of them have been settled.”

He circled back to the topic towards the end of his otherwise economy-heavy address. “It’s not a time for new imperialism or new colonialism,” Macron said. “This is a time of cooperation in order to fix these three global challenges for our fellow citizens.”

“We do prefer respect to bullies,” Macron concluded. “And we do prefer rule of law to brutality.”

‘My friend, I don’t understand’

Macron’s Davos address comes as Trump published messages showing the French leader’s confusion over Greenland and his proposal to hold a G7 meeting in Paris on Thursday that would include Russian representatives on the margins.

Trump posted screenshots on his Truth Social platform showing Macron offering to host a meeting with “Ukrainians, the Danish, the Syrians and the Russians” and inviting the US president to dinner in Paris.

“My friend … I do not understand what you are doing on Greenland,” Macron wrote. “Let us try to build great things.”

The messages emerged after Macron declined Trump’s invitation to join his Board of Peace initiative, prompting the US president to threaten 200% tariffs on French wine and champagne.

“Well, nobody wants him because he’s going to be out of office very soon,” Trump told reporters on Monday. “I’ll put a 200% tariff on his wines and champagnes and he’ll join.”

In a press briefing prior to Macron’s speech at Davos, the Élysée was explicit in its criticism of Trump’s tariff strategy, stating France does not view tariffs as a solution to global problems or economic imbalances.

Officials described the coercive trade approach as anti-cooperation and a fundamentally flawed method.

However, the Élysée said Trump’s actions validate Macron’s long-standing advocacy for European strategic autonomy, which predates the current US administration.

Snap summit and emergency mechanisms

The French leader’s appearance at Davos coincides with the extraordinary EU summit scheduled for Thursday, the same day Macron proposed hosting Trump in Paris for a dinner and expanded G7 meeting.

Macron has been at the forefront of European pushback, with French officials calling for activation of the EU’s anti-coercion instrument, an emergency mechanism that would restrict US companies’ ability to operate in European markets.

Trump agreed earlier on Monday to a meeting at Davos during a call with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, but insisted there can be no going back on Washington’s control over Greenland, as the Arctic island remains imperative for US and world security.

Just a day before, the US president sent a letter to Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre on Sunday linking his Greenland demands to his failure to win the Nobel Peace Prize.

The message, which Trump shared with other NATO leaders, stated that “considering your country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped eight wars plus, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of peace.”

The letter came in response to a joint message from Støre and Finnish President Alexander Stubb opposing Trump’s tariff threats.

Støre clarified that the Norwegian government does not award the Nobel Peace Prize — the Nobel Committee, an independent five-member body, decides.

The 2025 prize was awarded to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who symbolically presented her medal to Trump at the White House last week.

According to the Nobel Institute’s rules, the title of the prize winner cannot be transferred in any way once awarded. However, medals have been gifted or sold in the past.

‘To remain free, one must be feared’

The clash over Trump’s ambitions for Greenland follows Macron’s recent vow to strengthen France’s military presence on the Arctic island.

Around 15 French soldiers are already deployed in Nuuk for exercises, with additional land, air and naval assets being reinforced.

Speaking to armed forces at Istres Air Base last week, Macron declared 2026 would be a year of challenges for French defence and confirmed plans for €36 billion in additional military spending over 2026-2030.

“To remain free, one must be feared, and to be feared, one must be powerful. To be powerful in this brutal world, we must act faster and stronger,” Macron said.

Macron’s speech on Tuesday will be followed by Trump’s special address on Wednesday, which is widely expected to dominate the five-day forum, which runs until Friday.

Whether Macron will remain in Davos for potential meetings with Trump remains unclear, although a source close to the French president did not rule out participation in discussions on Ukraine on Wednesday.

Washington’s delegation to the Swiss Alps resort town is its largest-ever and includes US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and special envoy Steve Witkoff.