Israeli authorities begin demolishing former UNRWA compound in East Jerusalem.

Extract from ABC News

By Middle East correspondent Matthew Doran

• Topic:Unrest, Conflict and War

11 hours ago

Israeli authorities are demolishing the former headquarters of UNRWA. (ABC News: Matthew Doran)

In short:

Israeli authorities have begun demolishing the former headquarters of the United Nation's Palestinian aid agency in occupied East Jerusalem.

International staff were forced to leave in early 2025 as a legislated ban on UNRWA's operations in Israel came into force and their visas were torn up.

The UN has labelled the move a "serious violation of international law".

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Israeli authorities have started demolishing the former headquarters of the United Nation's Palestinian aid agency in occupied East Jerusalem in a move the UN has labelled a "serious violation of international law".

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) had been operating at the site since 1952, when Jordan was in control of East Jerusalem and the West Bank.

It maintained an uninterrupted presence there after Israel seized control of the area in 1967.

International staff were forced to leave in early 2025 when a legislated ban on UNRWA's operations in Israel came into force and their visas were torn up.

On Tuesday morning local time, Israeli security forces arrived with demolition equipment at the compound.

The destruction of the site was marked as a 'historical day' by Israeli officials.  (ABC News: Matthew Doran)

UNRWA spokesperson Jonathan Fowler said the personnel forced security guards to leave the site.

"Then bulldozers subsequently entered the compound and began demolishing buildings inside it," he said.

"This is an unprecedented attack against UNRWA and its premises and it also constitutes a serious violation of international law and the privileges and immunities of the United Nations.

"Like all UN member states, Israel is obliged to protect and respect the inviolability of UN premises — no exceptions."

The UN has labelled the move a "serious violation of international law".   (Reuters: Ammar Awad)

The International Court of Justice has ruled Israel's occupation of East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza illegal under international law — although Israel does not recognise the judgment.

Israel's far-right national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir toured the site alongside Jerusalem's deputy mayor Ariel King as the demolition was underway.

"It's a historical day, it's a festive day, and it's a very important day for the control of Jerusalem," he said in a video posted to social media.

"For years, these terror supporters were here … today, these terror supporters are being removed from here with all they established here."

A crane rests on the road next to the demolished UNRWA building.  (ABC News: Matthew Doran)

Israel's attack on UNRWA

The Israeli government has spent years attacking UNRWA, arguing it had been infiltrated by Hamas in Gaza and that some of its staff had been involved in the deadly attacks against Israel on October 7.

A UN investigation led to the sacking of nine staff who may have been involved, although the UN has long argued the accusations against the agency in its entirety were unfounded.

In 2024 the Knesset, Israel's parliament, passed legislation banning UNRWA's operations in Israel and making it illegal for any Israeli officials to have any dealings with the organisation.

UNRWA operates many schools and health services for the Palestinian population in occupied East Jerusalem. (Reuters)

The second part of the ban has hampered UNRWA's operations in Gaza and the West Bank, given Israel controls all entry and exit points.

UNRWA operates many schools and health services for the Palestinian population in occupied East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza.

Its operations also extend to things such as garbage collection in places such as the Shufat refugee camp, a short drive from the East Jerusalem compound. 

Palestinian activist: 'Despite the genocide and destruction, our cause will be victorious'

Muhammad Abu Hummus, a long-time Palestinian activist from Jerusalem, criticised the Israeli authorities.

"They think that if they demolish a building, that's it, that the Palestinian cause is finished," he told the ABC on the street outside the compound.

"We as Palestinian people will remain steadfast on the land, despite the genocide, despite the destruction, our cause will be victorious, God willing."

Muhammad Abu Hummus a long-time Palestinian activist from Jerusalem, criticised the Israeli authorities. 20/01/2026 (ABC News: Matthew Doran)

Israel has repeatedly rejected allegations it is committing genocide against the Palestinian people.

Mr Abu Hummus said the demolition was a result of the international community failing to call out Israel's actions.

"This is a sign of shame on the European countries, on the US, the western nations in general, that in front of them a building of the UN is destroyed," he said.

Ben, a member of the right-wing Zionist organisation Im Tirtzu was also watching the demolition, and praised the Israeli authorities for following through on promises to take control of the site.

"It's about time that we take it back," he said.

"It's inside Jerusalem, inside our capital, and it needs to go back to Israeli lands — that's it, it's a happy day.

Ben from Im Tirtzu, a right-wing Zionist organisation.  (ABC News: Matthew Doran)

"I think any normal country would have done what Israel is doing, and it's not illegal to do something in your own country after a specific organisation and its employees killed and butchered Israelis on the 7th of October."

Demolition part of Israel's UNRWA ban

Before international staff had to leave the UNRWA compound in early 2025, the site had been frequently targeted by protests.

There were also attempts to set fire to the facility, and staff had been attacked arriving for work.

Mr Fowler said the attacks against UNRWA the agency had to end.

"This is a huge source of concern because this should be a wake-up call," he said.

A woman picks up medicine from a pharmacy at a UNRWA compound in East Jerusalem. (Reuters: Sinan Abu Mayzer)

A spokesperson for Israel's Foreign Ministry rejected UNRWA's claims.

"The state of Israel owns the Jerusalem compound in which the Israel Land Authority is operating today," Oren Marmorstein said.

"Even prior to the passage of legislation in January 2025, UNRWA-Hamas had already ceased its operations at this site and no longer had any UN personnel or UN activity there.

"The compound does not enjoy any immunity and the seizure of this compound by Israeli authorities was carried out in accordance with both Israeli and international law."

Nationalist Israeli activists celebrate a ban on UNRWA's operations in Jerusalem and Israel during a protest last year. (Reuters: Jamal Awad)

He said the demolition work was part of the ongoing implementation of the UNRWA ban.

"UNRWA-Hamas employees participated in the October seventh massacre and the kidnapping of Israelis," Mr Marmorstein said.

"Numerous employees within the organisation are Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists, and the organisation's infrastructure has been used for tunnel construction, rocket fire, and terrorist activities.

"UNRWA-Hamas has long ceased to be a humanitarian aid organisation, serving instead as a greenhouse for terrorism."

California Governor Gavin Newsom warns US allies against 'rolling over' to Trump amid Greenland crisis.

Extract from ABC News

• By Thomas Morgan

• Topic:World Politics

3 hours ago

California Governor Gavin Newsom says European nations should "have principles" when dealing with Donald Trump. (AP: Markus Schreiber)

In short:

Gavin Newson has warned US allies that Donald Trump is a "T-Rex" and world leaders should "stand united" and stop "rolling over" to the president's demands. 

The top Democrat, widely tipped to be the party's presidential candidate in 2028, made the intervention as European leaders stand on the precipice of a trade war with the US over the future of Greenland. 

Mr Trump, who has repeatedly stated his desire for a US takeover of the Danish territory on national security grounds, will address the World Economic Forum in Davos later this week. 

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Gavin Newsom is warning US allies to confront "T-Rex" Donald Trump and stop "rolling over" to his demands, as European leaders grapple with a diplomatic crisis over the president's bid to take over Greenland. 

The California governor, a contender to be the Democrats' presidential candidate for 2028, told leaders they were "paying the price" for not being tougher with Mr Trump when he returned to the White House a year ago. 

His intervention at the World Economic Forum in Davos came as Mr Trump repeatedly threatened to impose additional 10 per cent tariffs on eight European countries who refuse to back his plan for American acquisition of the Danish territory. 

Mr Newsom urged leaders, who are weighing up how to respond to a potential trade war, to "get serious" and "stand united". 

"Well this is diplomacy with Donald Trump," he said. 

"He's a T-Rex. You mate with him or he devours you, one or the other. The Europeans could be (devoured) if they continue down this path and process.

"They need to stand tall, stand firm, stand united. Look, a year ago we should have been having this conversation, and they didn't. 

"And now you're paying the price - exactly what anyone, [any] objective observer would have anticipated we'd be where we are today."

The governor has been one of Mr Trump's most strident domestic critics at a time when leaders in Washington DC have appeared unwilling to confront the White House.

"I've seen this in the United States. The supine Congress playing both sides, you know, saying one thing on a text or tweet and another publicly."

Greenland already plays host to multiple US military bases. (AP: Evgeniy Maloletka)

"Just, I can't take this complicity. People rolling over," Mr Newsom added.

"I should have brought a bunch of knee pads for all the world leaders."

The US president has in recent weeks hardened his rhetoric on the future of Greenland.

In response, EU leaders have proposed beefing up Arctic security, suggested holding talks on the sidelines at Davos, and threatened to retaliate with a so-called "trade bazooka".

Many have been seeking to de-escalate the prospect of a tariff battle between the US and Europe, hoping instead to strike a compromise. 

Ex-NATO boss warns 'time for flattering is over'

It comes as Mr Trump prepares to travel to the Swiss alpine town to address the summit in person on Wednesday, local time. 

President Donald Trump is threatening tariffs on European nations. (Reuters: Evelyn Hockstein)

Former NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who is also a former Danish Prime Minister, was among those at the gathering on Tuesday.

He had similar advice for world leader to that of Mr Newsom. 

"It's really the future of NATO that is at stake," he told the Reuters news agency. 

"The time for flattering is over. It doesn't work. 

"The fact is Trump only respects force and strength. And unity. That's exactly what Europe should demonstrate right now."

EU 'should not hesitate' in Trump response, Macron says

Meanwhile, Mr Trump posted on social media a text message sent to him by Emmanuel Macron, in which the French president offered to bring together a meeting of G7 leaders after Davos, and questioned what his US counterpart was "doing on Greenland".

Mr Trump later posted an AI image of himself in Greenland, holding a US flag, and another image of him speaking to leaders next to a map showing Canada and Greenland as part of the United States.

French President Emmanuel Macron, who recently had eye surgery, is urging European countries to use a "trade bazooka" on the US.

Delivering a speech at the summit, Mr Macron said he did not plan to speak with Mr Trump.

Mr Macron warned in Davos that additional tariffs from the US could force the EU to use its anti-coercion mechanism "for the very first time" against their NATO ally.

“Can you imagine that?” he said, arguing that allied countries should be focusing on bringing peace to Ukraine. “This is crazy.”

In general, he said, the mechanism "is a powerful instrument and we should not hesitate to deploy it in today's tough environment."

He also used the speech to warn against Mr Trump's "new colonialism", describing it as a shift to a world "without rules".

"Where international law is trampled underfoot and where the only law that seems to matter is that of the strongest, and imperial ambitions are resurfacing."

ABC/wires

Inside the program teaching US ICE agents to 'Defend the Homeland'

Extract from ABC News

• By Brianna Morris-Grant

• Topic:World Politics

1 hours ago

The US has recruited more than 10,000 new ICE agents in the last year, amid a hiring blitz and immigration crackdown.  (ABC News: Kylie Silvester)

Link copied

On the home page of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, Uncle Sam has a message.

"America has been invaded by criminals and predators," reads the text.

"We need YOU to get them out."

America needs you, the imposing red and white capital letters declare.

This is the first introduction to ICE — the federal immigration force now responsible for rounding up immigrants and detaining them in a nationwide crackdown by the Trump administration.

Its agents, now numbering more than 22,000, are authorised to stop, detain and arrest anyone they suspect may be in the United States illegally.

They carry pistols, tear gas, and tactical batons. They drive unmarked vehicles. They wear bulletproof vests and face masks.

Beneath that first message, in smaller print, the site adds: "You do not need an undergraduate degree."

For the thousands of "patriots" who've applied, a position with ICE is a source of pride.

Experts, elected officials and activists say otherwise — with some, including Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, labelling it an "unwanted, uninvited" force.

"They're indiscriminately taking people off the street," he said last week.

'Choose your mission': The ICE hiring process

According to its website, ICE is looking for individuals with "integrity and courage".

Recruits must be "in excellent physical condition", able to "tolerate environmental stresses", and have "strong critical thinking skills".

It invites you: "Choose your mission."

There are dozens of openings for "deportation officers" on the agency's recruitment portal, inviting recruits to sign up for work based out of 25 different field offices.

The starting salary is $US51,632 ($77,179.50) a year, or $US1,985.85 ($2,977.20) a fortnight.

Applicants must be US citizens and, according to the employment portal, pass a background check, an online assessment, and a pre-employment drug test.

They must pass a pre-employment physical fitness test and medical examination.

They must submit their resume and fill out an occupational questionnaire.

Immigration agents have become a familiar sight in some US cities.  (Reuters: Seth Herald)

That questionnaire, seen by the ABC, asks candidates whether they've ever committed a federal offence.

It asks whether they have ever lost the right to own a gun, whether they have ever been convicted of domestic violence, and whether they've used drugs.

It asks whether they've committed sexual abuse in a prison or other institution — then asks whether they've been convicted of any sexual abuse at all.

Are they married to an illegal immigrant? Have they ever "harboured, concealed, transported, or employed" an undocumented person?

Has their credibility ever been questioned because of dishonesty or unethical behaviour?

How does their commitment to the US Constitution and the "founding principles of the United States" inspire them to apply for ICE?

How would they help "advance the president's executive orders and policy priorities"?

Submit. And wait.

Once the application is in, the agency's website promises that things will "move fast".

ICE academy slashed to just 47 days of training

A successful application means a stint at the ICE's training academy in the south-eastern state of Georgia.

As of 2015, according to publicly available documents, this was a 16-week program.

As of 2026, as the Trump administration works to staff a national immigration crackdown, that program is just 47 days long.

Training runs six days a week for eight weeks, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials said in August.

The physical fitness test requires recruits to perform 15 push-ups, 32 sit-ups, and run 2.4 kilometres in 14 minutes.

More than a third of recruits were failing the test as of October, according to training officials who spoke to The Atlantic.

Despite protests around the country, not everyone in the US opposes ICE.

Josh McConkey is an emergency physician, Air Force Reserve colonel, and disaster response liaison officer.

Asked about the shortened training program, he told the ABC: "It's reasonable to ask whether that has implications for readiness."

But he added that training was "not the only measure of capability".

"Before an ICE agent becomes operational, they must still demonstrate competence through firearms qualification, legal instruction, use-of-force standards, and scenario-based evaluations," he said.

"They are also expected to operate under the same constitutional and professional law-enforcement standards as any federal officer."

He also noted the shorter training time meant "greater importance" placed on field training.

"The agent must not only demonstrate capability before becoming operational, but they are expected to adhere to the highest professional law-enforcement standards every day in the field," he said.

"Maintaining those standards requires adequate training time, proper oversight, and accountability — especially during periods of rapid hiring."

In early December, Democratic senator and Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin denounced what he called low hiring standards.

He claimed training had been slashed to just six weeks.

ICE was, he said, lowering the requirements agents needed before "unleashing them onto the streets of America".

"Recent reporting suggests that these new, lowered hiring standards have resulted in ICE recruits who have barely been able to read or write," he said.

"[They have] failed drug tests, displayed tattoos associated with gangs and white supremacists, was unable to meet basic physical fitness requirements, and even have pending criminal charges.

"These are the people that President Trump is attempting to release onto our streets to restore 'law and order.'"

'Defend the Homeland'

More than 220,000 "patriotic Americans" applied for ICE in the last year, according to an announcement made by the agency earlier this month.

At ICE hiring expos around the country, visitors were promised on-the-spot hiring opportunities and bonuses of up to $US50,000 over five years.

"Defend the Homeland", the signage urged. "Join ICE today."

At a two-day hiring fair in Texas last September, the agency said it made 700 job offers, conditional on applicants passing all medical and background checks.

Journalists from National Public Radio, who attended the ICE expo in Utah, described a job pool of veterans, university graduates, current law enforcement officers, and fired federal workers.

According to the Los Angeles Times, current and former law enforcement officials were funnelled into separate lines to speed up the process.

The ABC asked Dr McConkey what would make up the "ideal" agent for an organisation like ICE.

"Ultimately, the best agents are those who see service not as power, but as stewardship — protecting the country, supporting their teammates, and upholding the values they swore an oath to defend," he said.

But others have raised questions about whether the agents ICE is recruiting meet the calibre noted by Dr McConkey.

The killing of Renee Nicole Good sparked renewed protests across the United States.  (Reuters: Seth Herald)

Former DC chief of Homeland Security and Intelligence, Donell Harvin, accused ICE of failing to practise proper police safety protocols.

He noted ICE officer Jonathan Ross, the agent who shot and killed 37-year-old Minneapolis mother Renee Nicole Good earlier this month, was "experienced".

"We have ICE agents that are rolling off the assembly line, so to speak, with far, far less training [than him]," Mr Harvin said.

"I will tell you that in many states, you can become an animal control officer, but you need twice as much training.

"Your local dog catcher will need more training to carry a firearm and execute warrants and arrest people than an ICE agent. And that's what's concerning.

"If you take the current DHS Secretary Kristi Noem at her word, the ICE agent who shot Ms Good was following his training, his tactics and policies.

"If that's the case … then we have a big problem.

"Because what we have are ICE agents that are not practising proper police or law enforcement officer safety and survivability."

Following that hiring blitz, little information has been made public regarding who made it through the process and onto the streets of America.

'We're going to carry out that mission'

Someone who has made himself increasingly more public, however, is the man leading the charge of Mr Trump's immigration crackdown.

Unmasked and donning a custom wool trench coat, Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino has made himself a recognisable figure on the streets of cities along the US south-west.

The 55-year-old told CNN he wasn't dissuaded by the protesters or the backlash his agents face.

"We're going to carry out that mission," he said in October.

"And that's paramount, or else we shouldn't be here. We're going to carry out that mission.

"[If] someone steps in the way, then … that may not work out well for them.

"And if we need to effect an arrest of a US citizen or anyone else, then we'll do that."

Mr Bovino has repeatedly aimed at local officials, who he said had "better get used to" immigration officers being on the streets.

In October, a Chicago judge ordered him to appear in her courtroom every weekday at 6pm to explain any use of force by his agents on the city's streets.

That order was later blocked on appeal.

After Ms Good was shot and killed in her car on January 7, Mr Bovino was seen on the ground in Minnesota.

The rising tension has led to a surge in federal agents in the area.

Ms Good's death was at least the ninth ICE shooting since September.

Two days after that incident, a US border agent shot and wounded two people in Portland, Oregon, during a vehicle stop.

At one raid at a petrol station in St Paul on January 11, agents allegedly deployed pepper balls and tear gas against protesters.

Video captured of the incident appeared to show federal agents dragging a man from his car, then tackling a filming bystander.

Pentagon could deploy troops to Minnesota protests

The possible deployment comes after US President Donald Trump threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to quell anti-ICE protests in the state.

Mr Bovino was photographed leading agents into a Target in the same city that day.

On January 15, the DHS said an agent shot a man in the leg after being attacked with a shovel and a broom during an arrest.

Officials said the agents had fired tear gas, not live rounds.

Jim Bueermann, a former California police chief who now runs research group the Future Politicing Institute, said shootings by immigration officers were not "one-offs".

"This is clearly developing into a pattern and practice of how they deal with people in the enforcement of immigration laws," he told NBC.

"To me, that's the most alarming thing we're seeing."

Donald Trump, the madman theory, and why even Australia is not safe.

Extract from ABC News 

Analysis

By Riley Stuart in London

• Topic:World Politics

17 minutes ago

Donald Trump's threats have surprised his allies. (Reuters: Kevin Lamarque)

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In the year since Donald Trump was inaugurated, world leaders have streamed into the White House to kiss the ring.

Some, including Australia's Anthony Albanese, emerge from their meetings still smiling. Some do not.

A stony-faced delegation from Denmark and Greenland went viral last week after their chat with the US president's team seemed to go so badly it sparked an impromptu debrief — complete with cigarettes — in a nearby car park.

But 12 months into Trump's second term, something has become clear: even those who leave the Oval Office with a deal, beware. It might not be worth the paper it's written on.

And yes, that goes for Australia, too.

Donald Trump greets Anthony Albanese outside the White House last year. (Reuters: Kevin Lamarque)

This hypothesis stacked up at the weekend, when Trump blindsided eight allies by announcing new tariffs on them.

On Saturday, the president said France, Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands, Finland and the United Kingdom would all face an additional 10 per cent levy on exports to the US from February 1 unless they supported his plan to buy Greenland.

If a deal isn't done by June, the tariffs would rise to 25 per cent, he said in a social media post.

The president's threats come despite the European Union (EU), which represents all the affected countries except the UK, having negotiated a trade agreement with the US in July last year.

"It's a good deal for everybody," Trump said at the time. "It's going to bring us closer together."

That sentiment lasted less than six months

Donald Trump's text to Norway's prime minister, annotated

A text message from the US president to Norway's prime minister has fanned the flames of the geopolitical dumpster fire engulfing Greenland. We've analysed Donald Trump's claims to see if they stack up.

The UK, which had still been thrashing out a new deal with the US, is scrambling to assess its new reality.

Britain, like Australia, had been under the impression its relationship with the Trump White House was rock solid.

The president, whose late mother was Scottish, last year even said the UK would be protected from future tariffs "because I like them".

Downing Street had pulled out all the stops to ingratiate itself to Trump. On his first visit to the Oval Office, British PM Sir Keir Starmer brought a letter from King Charles III inviting Trump for an unprecedented second state visit.

Could efforts like this have counted for nothing?

California's Governor Gavin Newsom, who's considered a potential future US presidential candidate, thinks so, saying world leaders are being "played".

"It's embarrassing," he told reporters after arriving in Davos, Switzerland on Tuesday for the World Economic Forum.

Trump is expected to address that gathering on Wednesday.

Trump and the madman theory

Albanese visited the White House in October and his meeting was widely lauded back home as a major success.

While Australia has been slapped with a 10 per cent tariff on its exports to the US, the PM has even been able to frame that as a victory, given it's the president's stated minimum level for all nations.

But we're learning no-one is immune when Trump changes his mind, and some argue there is no issue too trivial for the 79-year-old to pick a fight over.

"The reality that the US president has the reasoning power of a kindergarten child is probably more compelling than that he's slipping into cognitive decline," wrote former Australian foreign minister Bob Carr in a social media post this week.

Could Trump take issue with the Albanese government's freshly passed tighter gun laws and hate speech reforms, given his scepticism of those matters in the US?

Could the president target Australia if it rejects its invitation to pay $US1 billion ($1.49 billion) and join his so-called global Board of Peace? When France declined, Trump threatened to introduce 200 per cent tariffs on its wine and champagne exports.

Trump has previously expressed support for a British government plan to return the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, but on Tuesday, he called it an "act of great stupidity". Could the president next decide he no longer likes the AUKUS defence pact, too?

James D Boys, a senior visiting research fellow at University College London's Centre on US Politics, says no country is immune from the US president's threats.

"If I'm the leadership in Australia right now, I'd be keeping my head down and trying to stay out of the way," he says.

"I'd be trying to stay well away from everything that's going on with Greenland and the NATO alliance."

Boys, in his soon-to-be-released book, argues Trump negotiates using the madman theory.

It's a political strategy in which a leader purposely appears unhinged, and even makes extreme threats, in a bid to exact concessions from others.

"Controversial though that might be, it would seem to have worked," Boys says.

"If you're Donald Trump, you'd look at past actions like threatening Venezuela. Venezuela didn't play ball. their leader is now languishing in an American prison.

"There is a series of examples like that. In the case of Greenland, the Trump administration realises that if it wants other countries to jump, it has to impact their pockets.

"It will be interesting to see the extent to which foreign leaders are prepared to play ball now, though.

"I think European leaders are possibly looking at these latest threats and thinking we can't keep falling for this trick."

They're meeting in Brussels on Thursday night to map out their next move.

Macron warns of ‘world without rules’ in swipe at Trump.

 Extract from The New Daily

World

The New Daily
Jan 21, 2026, updated Jan 21, 2026

US President Donald Trump has posted an AI-generated image of himself planting the American flag on Greenland as he doubled down with a warning that “there’s no going back”.

The picture on Truth Social shows Trump staking his claim on the Danish territory, backed by Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Trump also trolled European leaders — including British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni — with a fake photo of them viewing a map showing Greenland, Canada, and Venezuela as part of the US.

Trump was on Wednesday (AEDT) marking one year since his inauguration with a rambling press conference at the White House.

Meanwhile, world leaders were meeting in Davos for an economic forum.

France’s President Emmanuel Macron delivered a speech in which he took a swipe at Trump and warned of a “shift towards a world without rules where international law is trampled under foot and the only rule that seems to matter is the rule of the strongest”.

Earlier, Trump linked his aggressive stance on Greenland to the 2025 decision not to award him the Nobel Peace Prize, telling Norway’s prime minister he no longer felt “an obligation to think purely of Peace”.

Trump’s text message to Jonas Gahr Støre released on Monday appears to ratchet up a standoff between Washington and its closest allies over his threats to take over Greenland, a self-governing territory of NATO member Denmark.

Store issued a statement on social media platform X saying “threats have no place among allies”.

On Saturday, Trump announced a 10 per cent import tax starting in February on goods from eight nations that have rallied around Denmark and Greenland, including Norway.

Those countries issued a forceful rebuke.

Many longtime allies of the US remained resolute that Greenland was not for sale but encouraged Washington to discuss solutions.

In a statement on social media, the European Union’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the bloc had “no interest to pick a fight” but would “hold our ground”.

The White House has not ruled taking control of the strategic Arctic island by force.

Asked whether Trump could invade Greenland, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen said “you can’t leave anything out until the president himself has decided to leave anything out”.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer also sought to de-escalate tensions.

“I think this can be resolved and should be resolved through calm discussion,” he said, adding that he did not believe military action would occur.

Early on Tuesday, US time, Trump posted on social media that he had spoken with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

“I agreed to a meeting of the various parties in Davos, Switzerland,” he said, where leaders will be attending the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting this week.

Trump also posted a text message from Emmanuel Macron in which the French president suggested a meeting of members of the Group of Seven industrialised democracies in Paris after the Davos gathering.

Later, however, Trump posted some provocatively doctored images. One showed him planting the US flag next to a sign reading “Greenland, US Territory, Est. 2026”.

The other showed Trump in the Oval Office next to a map that showed Greenland and Canada covered with the US stars and stripes.

Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said in a Facebook post on Monday the tariff threats would not change their stance.

“We will not be pressured,” he wrote.

Meanwhile, Naaja Nathanielsen, Greenland’s minister for business, minerals, energy, justice and equality, told The Associated Press she was moved by the quick response of allies to the tariff threat.

“I think a lot of countries are afraid that if they let Greenland go, what would be next?”

Trump’s text message to Gahr Støre was released by the Norwegian government.

“Considering your Country decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize for having stopped 8 Wars PLUS, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely of Peace,” Trump wrote.

“The World is not secure unless we have Complete and Total Control of Greenland.”

The White House confirmed the authenticity of the message.

Trump has openly coveted the peace prize, which the independent Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded to Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado in 2025.

Last week, Machado presented her Nobel medal to Trump, who said he planned to keep it. Trump later told reporters he didn’t care about the Nobel prize.

“A very fine woman felt that I deserved it and really wanted me to have the Nobel prize. And I appreciate that.

“If anybody thinks that Norway doesn’t control the Nobel prize, they’re just kidding. … And I don’t care what Norway says. But I really don’t care about that. What I care about is saving lives,” he said.

-with AAP