Emmanuel Macron has responded to Donald Trump with a stark warning, emphasizing that the world is transitioning into an era devoid of rules, where international law is disregarded, and power dynamics prevail.

The French President’s remarks at the World Economic Forum followed Trump’s release of personal communications from Macron regarding Trump’s controversial plans for Greenland.

Addressing the audience at Davos, and donning aviator sunglasses due to an eye issue, Macron pointed out that the global landscape is moving toward a lawless state, where the might of the powerful supersedes legal frameworks. He warned of the resurgence of what he termed “imperial ambitions.”

Furthermore, Macron urged Europe to actively use its available measures to safeguard its interests in the face of escalating trade tensions with Trump, who was scheduled to speak later in the week.

Macron began his address by noting that despite expectations of peace, stability, and predictability, the world is instead grappling with instability and imbalance, with conflict becoming a commonplace occurrence.

But while Macron did not directly address the US President, he noted that 2025 had been plagued by dozens of wars, adding: ‘I hear some of them have been settled. We do prefer respect to bullies’.

Macron also denounced US competition seeking to ‘subordinate Europe’ and ‘unacceptable’ tariffs following Trump’s threat to impose levies on countries opposing his plans to seize Greenland.

The French President described ‘competition from the United States of America through trade agreements that undermine our export interests, demand maximum concessions, and openly aim to weaken and subordinate Europe’.

France’s President Emmanuel Macron gestures as he delivers a speech during the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos on January 20, 2026

Sporting a pair of aviator sunglasses due to a current eye condition, the French president told the ⁠World Economic Forum in Davos on ​Tuesday: ‘It’s… ‍a ​shift towards a world without rules, where international law ‍is ‍trampled underfoot’

President Emmanuel Macron, Senate President Gerard Larcher, and National Assembly President Yael Braun Pivet participate in a meeting on the institutional future of New Caledonia on January 19, 2026, at the Elysee Palace in Paris

France’s President Emmanuel Macron (2L) greets Queen Mathilde of Belgium (R) in front of King Philippe – Filip of Belgium (C) during the World Economic Forum

They were ‘combined with an endless accumulation of new tariffs that are fundamentally unacceptable – even more so when they are used as leverage against territorial sovereignty’, he said.

Following his speech, Macron told reporters that he did not plan​ to speak ⁠with his US ​counterpart at the forum.

Macron’s Davos statement comes after Trump published messages showing the French leader’s confusion over the US President’s plans to take control of Greenland. 

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, we are totally in line on Syria. We can do great things on Iran,’ Macron wrote. ‘I do not understand what you are doing on Greenland. Let us try to build great things.’ 

The message emerged after Macron declined Trump’s invitation to join his so-called Board of Peace initiative, prompting the US leader to threaten 200 per cent tariffs on wine and champagne.

Macron had said ‘at this stage’ he was not planning on serving with Trump’s group, which is intended to create the second phase of the Gaza peace plan. 

‘Well, nobody wants him because he’s going to be out of office very soon,’ Trump told reporters on Monday. 

Trump then to escalated his threat of a trade war with Europe.

‘What I’ll do is, if they feel hostile, I’ll put a 200 percent tariff on his wines and champagnes and he’ll join,’ Trump said before boarding a flight to Washington. ‘But he doesn’t have to join.’

Trump has already suggested imposing tariffs on France and several other European nations for opposing his actions in Greenland.

During a press briefing before Macron’s speech, the Elysee heavily criticised Trump’s tariff strategy, stating that France does not view tariffs as a viable solution to international or economic issues. 

French government officials described the coercive trade approach as anti-cooperation and a fundamentally flawed method. 

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

In the text, Macron promised to assemble a G7 following the World Economic Forum in Davos and asked Trump to have dinner with him in Paris on Thursday before he returns to the US

Trump continued to post on Truth Social, with a photoshopped picture of himself, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio ‘claiming’ Greenland with the US flag

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 vital for US and world security.

Just a day prior, Trump sent a letter to Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, attributing 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 clash over Trump’s ambitions for Greenland follows the French President’s recent vow to strengthen France’s military presence on the Arctic island. 

Around 15 French soldiers are already deployed in Greenland’s capital, 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£31.3billion in additional military spending from 2026 to 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.

This is a breaking news story. More to follow.