Volkswacht Bodensee - Trump to make online address to global elite's Davos meeting

Trump will be sworn in at the US Capitol in Washington on Monday, January 20, the first day of the WEF gathering in the Swiss Alps.

"He will join us digitally" on January 23, WEF president Borge Brende said in a press briefing previewing the annual meeting.

"We think that will be a very special moment also to learn more what the new administration has (in terms) of policy priorities," Brende said.

The US president's return to the White House was already expected to dominate discussions in Davos, a gathering that he attended in person during his first term in office.

His plans to cut taxes and impose trade tariffs have raised concerns that his policies would rekindle inflation.

Trump's thinking is in stark contrast to the multilateralism championed at Davos, where the forum's agenda this year is held under the official theme "Collaboration for the Intelligent Age".

Borge said European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen and Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang will also address the WEF.

Trump launched a trade war with China during his first term and it is expected to face more tariffs from his incoming administration, but US allies such as the European Union could also be in the line of fire.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, whose country is fighting against a Russian invasion, will give a "special address" to the WEF on Tuesday.

Trump has promised to bring a swift end to the fighting when he enters office next week, raising fears in Ukraine that it will be forced to make major territorial concessions in exchange for peace.

- Milei and Mideast leaders -

Borge said 350 top government officials and more than 900 CEOs will attend this year's WEF.

Trump became the first sitting US president to attend in nearly two decades with his 2018 trip followed by another in 2020.

On the world stage, he has been increasingly joined by leaders of a similar persuasion after a swathe of elections in 2024 saw incumbents pushed out.

One of his admirers, Argentine President Javier Milei, will return to Davos this year after a fiery debut speech in 2024.

While Trump inherits multiple crises in the Middle East, the WEF will host Israeli President Isaac Herzog and Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa as well as Iranian Vice President Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Syria's interim foreign minister, Asaad al-Shaibani, will also take part in the Davos forum after Islamist-backed rebels toppled president Bashar al-Assad last month.

R.Buehler--VB