While Davos 2025 marked the triumph of Donald Trump’s return, the 2026 edition will be remembered for his isolation. His rambling, « kitchen-sink » long speech left the audience—from Swiss hosts to captains of industry—in a state of awkward lethargy. The malaise turned into diplomatic defiance during the gala dinner, where his Treasury Secretary watched Christine Lagarde pointedly leave the table before ending the night being booed by the room. The contrast was striking compared to the standing ovation reserved for Canadian PM Mark Carney and the bipartisan acclaim greeting Emmanuel Macron’s return to Paris. History will record that Europe yawned through the American litany but was electrified by the surprise guest, Volodymyr Zelensky, whose masterful address definitively eclipsed the old master of Washington.
In Davos, on January 20, 2026, history didn’t just stutter—it screamed. If there is one phrase to summarize the glacial atmosphere in the Swiss Alps during the interventions of Mark Carney and Emmanuel Macron, it is this: Enough is enough.
For decades, Canada and Europe have lived in the comfort of a security architecture guaranteed by Washington and a global trade system regulated by law. That era is over. What we heard this week was the sound of two loyal allies who, with their backs against the wall, have decided to stop apologizing for their existence.