Get out of Greenland mode and stand up for yourself, Zelenskyy tells Europe

Ukraine president accuses EU leaders of waiting for direction from Donald Trump in blistering speech at Davos

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivers a speech at the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has taken aim at Europe in a speech at Davos, accusing leaders of being in “Greenland mode” as they waited for leadership from Donald Trump on Ukraine and other geopolitical crises rather than taking action themselves.

“Just last year, here in Davos, I ended my speech with the words Europe needs to know how to defend itself,” Mr Zelenskyy said in a speech at the World Economic Forum. “A year has passed, and nothing has changed.” 

He added: “Europe remains in Greenland mode: maybe someone somewhere will do something.” 

Mr Zelenskyy’s speech nodded toward the extraordinary demands by Mr Trump for the US to take over Greenland, but largely eschewed criticism of the US president, instead blaming Europeans for remaining at the behest of an increasingly unpredictable White House.

He said: “Everyone gave attention to Greenland, and it is clear most leaders are not sure what to do about it. It seems like everyone is just waiting for America to cool down on this topic, hoping it will pass away. But what if it [does] not: what then?

“Europe must learn how to defend itself,” he added. “Sending 14 or 40 soldiers to Greenland – what is that meant to achieve? What message does that send to Putin? To China? And perhaps, most importantly, what message does it send to Denmark?”

During the speech, Mr Zelenskyy also suggested that Ukraine could help defend Europe in the event of a Russian invasion of Greenland, saying: “We know what to do if Russian warships go near Greenland, Ukraine can help with that. They can sink near Greenland just as they do near Crimea.” 

He also suggested that Europe should play a more muscular role in targeting Russia’s “shadow fleet” of oil tankers that help bankroll its war machine, and said it remained too easy for Russia to bypass sanctions that allow it to continue mass-producing missiles and other ordinance.

The threats to Europe were existential for Nato, he said, and Europe needed a “united armed forces” that could defend the continent.

“Today, Europe relies only on the belief that if danger comes, then Nato will react. But no one has really seen the alliance in action. If Putin decides to take Lithuania or strike Poland, who will respond? Right now, Nato exists thanks to the belief that the United States will act … but what if it doesn’t?”

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Mr Zelenskyy’s speech – which mainly targeted Europe for failing to respond to the instability in US leadership – was delivered shortly after he met Mr Trump to discuss stalled talks for a peace deal to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Mr Trump told reporters that his meeting with Mr Zelenskyy was “good” but that there was “a ways to go”. His envoy Steve Witkoff is to meet Vladimir Putin later on Thursday. Witkoff said the fact that the meeting was called by the Russians was a good sign.

“I think we’ve got it down to one issue and we have discussed iterations of that issue, and that means it’s solvable,” Witkoff said before flying to Moscow. He was joined by Mr Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

Asked at Davos whether he had a message for Mr Putin, Mr Trump said: “The war has to end.”