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In the Swiss town of Davos, with the opening concert and introductory sessions, the annual edition of the World Economic Forum has just begun, with the participation of around 3,000 delegates from 130 countries, numerous world leaders, heads of state, and top executives. The most eagerly awaited address is that of the President of the United States, Donald Trump.
The Davos Summit is called upon to address the most important geo-economic issues at a time when the global economy is facing severe turbulence due to ongoing conflicts, trade wars, and record growth in global public debt.
Considerable attention will be devoted to the rapid expansion of investments in Artificial Intelligence and to the risks, highlighted by many economic analysts, of a possible speculative bubble.
Governments are being called upon to make difficult choices. European governments in particular, despite weak economic prospects and despite the growing burden of the war in Ukraine, are required to invest in digital infrastructure, in energy—whose demand is continuously increasing due to the development of data centers—and, above all, in defense spending.
The future of Europe is being played out on Artificial Intelligence: Europe must rapidly catch up, otherwise the gap with the United States and China will no longer be bridgeable.
However, developments in recent weeks, particularly in the Arctic, raise fears that participants’ attention may be diverted and that everything could end up in a cul-de-sac.
Tomorrow, in fact, the address of U.S. President Donald Trump is expected; he will not miss the opportunity to speak about tariffs and his desire to take over Greenland.
And that is not all. The occupant of the White House has also convened, for the morning of Thursday the 22nd, the signing ceremony of the Charter establishing the Gaza Peace Council, and to this end he has sent invitations to participants.
It should be recalled that, after the truce reached in Gaza, Donald Trump proposed the Board of Peace as a replacement for the United Nations, unilaterally deciding who should participate in this new body.
For some time now, the U.S. President has criticized the United Nations, considering it a useless and inefficient organization, and has repeatedly threatened to withhold U.S. contributions. Recently, he also signed an executive order to withdraw his country from numerous UN and international agencies, accusing them of anti-Americanism.
The real reasons, however, lie in the fact that some states represented on the Security Council oppose U.S. foreign policy and that China has secured significant positions of power within the organization.
After the United States—which in 2023 paid approximately 20 billion dollars in mandatory and voluntary contributions—China is the largest contributor to the UN, and in just a few years its contributions have tripled. Over ten years, the overall budget of the UN system has risen from 45 to nearly 70 billion dollars. In 2023 it stood at 68.8 billion dollars.
The United Nations is universally recognized as a fundamental pillar of international law, with the aim of promoting peace and global security through states’ compliance with the rules set out in its founding Charter.
Italy participates in the United Nations with an annual mandatory contribution of approximately 100 million euros, in addition to voluntary contributions. It is the seventh-largest contributor.
Trump would therefore like to replace the UN with the Board of Peace, which would in any case be established ad hoc for the Middle East.
However, the structure of this body, its role, and whether there will be a founding treaty are still unknown.
Many believe it is merely an instrument in Trump’s hands, to be used according to his wishes.
The U.S. President has made it known that anyone wishing to be part of it must pay a contribution of one billion dollars every three years. He has also invited Vladimir Putin—who is certainly not a man of peace—thereby embarrassing other prospective members.
Among the invitees is also Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who has already stated her intention to join, saying: “I believe that our country can play a leading role, and we are ready to do our part in building the peace plan.” Paying one billion dollars simply to “sit at the table of peace” could prove to be an excessive cost.
In any case, it is not certain that the path initiated by Donald Trump will achieve the desired outcome, because the presence of Turkey and Qatar has already infuriated Israel, which is raising barricades against the plan.
We shall see what happens in Davos.
Many European leaders risk missing the signing ceremony because it is scheduled more or less at the same time as the extraordinary European Council meeting convened for the afternoon to discuss the Greenland crisis as well as the recent U.S. withdrawals from UN agencies.
For this reason, we have the impression that the event is entirely focused on the agenda of the occupant of the White House and on his statements, relegating all other items on the agenda to the background.
We nevertheless hope that, beyond Trumpian performances, the Summit will produce clear positions on the most important and strategic issues that concern us closely: economic growth, migration policy, and European defense.
Franco Torchia
Geopolitical Analyst
President, of Ethical Committee
