Great white hopes |
A PAIR of North American leaders delivered remarkably different speeches in Switzerland last week. Donald Trump’s address was a largely predictable, self-aggrandising rant that ranged from justifications for his claim on Greenland (or possibly Iceland) to a racist diatribe against Somalis, interpolated with denunciations of Joe Biden. Mark Carney acknowledged that the rules-based international order was always partially fictitious, and that the rupture cannot be reversed.
The Canadian PM uttered some truths that most of his European counterparts would struggle to enunciate. Carney has, therefore, widely been hailed as a viable anti-Trump by the usual centrists and some progressives. He called upon middle powers to act together in dealing with the foremost hegemon, “because if we’re not at the table, we’re on the menu”. But Denmark has been at the table, yet Greenland is on the menu.
Since last week, Trump has seemingly rescinded his invasion plan and dropped the threat of increased tariffs against European nations that resisted his acquisition of Greenland, citing a ‘framework agreement’ with Nato for establishing military bases (which would anyhow have been possible). Details are still murky, although Guantánamo Bay........