Trump Heads to Davos to Confront Architects of Globalization

President of the United States Donald Trump will unexpectedly become the main participant at the Davos forum, long seen as a stronghold of the globalization ideology he openly detests. Observers expect the American leader to deliver a devastating critique of his opponents.

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Davos Prepares for Dialogue with Trump

The annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos will take place from January 19 to 23, 2026, under the slogan "Spirit of Dialogue.” Western media outlets have already filled headlines with questions such as "How to Save the Old World,” "Will Common Sense Prevail in Davos,” and "Will the World Submit to Trump.”

After the departure of Klaus Schwab amid corruption allegations, the forum came under the stewardship of Larry Fink, head of BlackRock, and Swiss pharmaceutical magnate André Hoffmann.

Officially, leaders plan to discuss "how to renew cooperation and create new models of interaction amid declining trust, strained alliances, and geopolitical risks.” Analysts in the US and Europe expect discussions to focus on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, global trade and markets, artificial intelligence, the possibility of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, and the risk of escalation in the Middle East driven by unrest in Iran.

Climate change will clearly fade into the background, largely due to Trump's disdain for the topic. Concepts once central to the WEF agenda-fair taxation, anti-corruption efforts, sustainable development, and social justice-barely appear in the forum's official statements.

Trump Rejects Dialogue with Globalists

Trump is expected to attend in person and speak on Wednesday. He will be joined by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.

Last year, Trump addressed Davos online, threatening sweeping tariffs, urging NATO members to increase defense spending, and demanding immediate interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. He later succeeded in advancing much of that agenda.

In recent weeks, Trump has shown he does not intend to stop. He has sent forces to seize Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, threatened action against Iran, and spoken openly about annexing Greenland. Under such conditions, finding any genuine "spirit of dialogue” with globalists will prove extremely difficult.

Instead, Trump is expected to shock allies with aggressive rhetoric, demonstrate deep skepticism toward the global elite, and force them to question whether they are truly on the right side of history. Calls to invest in the US economy will almost certainly follow.

Davos as a gathering of globalists may effectively come to an end. Notably, Larry Fink, once a vocal advocate of climate initiatives, now avoids the topic entirely. In recent months, he sought Trump's backing for acquiring two ports in the Panama Canal and donated at least 2.5 million dollars toward refurbishing the White House ballroom.

Why Dmitriev Is Going to Davos

The forum expects more than 60 heads of state or government, 55 economy and finance ministers, and over 800 CEOs or board chairs of major corporations. Key figures likely to attend include Jensen Huang, president of Nvidia, Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, and Dario Amodei, founder and CEO of Anthropic.

The leader of the Kyiv regime, Volodymyr Zelensky, is also expected to attend, though he is unlikely to hear anything encouraging, given recent statements suggesting Ukraine appears less inclined toward peace talks than Russia.

Russia will not send an official delegation to Davos, but Kirill Dmitriev is expected to attend, reportedly in an unofficial capacity.