Donald Trump isn’t shy when it comes to burning bridges and throwing friends/allies under the bus, but his behavior of late has been zealous even by his standards.
In the midst of a number of social media rants made in the early hours of the morning, Trump posted a screenshot of a private message he had received from French President Emmanuel Macron, one in which it appears as though Macron is vying for peace.
Cool heads and rationality seem to be what the world desperately needs given the current climate. World leaders using their positions and accompanying influence to deescalate tensions and explore peaceful, civilized methods of pursuing global harmony is very much the order of the day.
And Emmanuel Macron knows that.
Millions of people the world over may be baffled – not to mention angry – with Donald Trump’s bullishness as regards the U.S.’s potential takeover of Greenland, but finding alternative options that sate Trump’s apparent need for a grand show of expansion and ensure NATO remains intact isn’t achieved by simply telling the POTUS “No”.
Instead, subtler, more diplomatic avenues must be sought. Put plainly, a direct line of dialogue between European leaders and the White House chief must be established, through which they can attempt the process of talking Trump down/imploring him to see reason.
That’s actually what French President Emmanuel Macron attempted, only for Trump to publish the private message online.
It’s not the first time Trump has betrayed the trust of a peer in making public information that was never intended to be so. In June of 2025, he revealed details of a conversation he had with Mark Rutte, secretary general of NATO.
Tensions between Trump and Macron are high as of the past few days, and not just because of Macron’s decision to stand up to Trump when the president declared his desire to purchase Greenland.
“I may put a tariff on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security. So I may do that,” Trump said in response to the European kick back.
Macron is also said to have turned down Trump’s offer of joining his rather bizarre ‘Board of Peace’ initiative (Russia dictator Vladimir Putin has also received an invite), leading to Trump threatening 200 percent tariffs on French wine and champagne.
When a reporter told Trump that Macron was set to decline his invite to be on the ‘Board of Peace’, Trump replied: “Did he say that? Well, nobody wants him because he will be out of office very soon.”
“I’ll put a 200% tariff on his wines and champagnes, and he’ll join, but he doesn’t have to join,” he added.
Whether the above snub is behind Trump’s decision to air Macron’s private messages is another matter, but air he surely did.
According to the screenshot, Macron wrote: “My friend, We are totally in line on Syria. We can do great things on Iran. I do not understand what you are doing on Greenland.
“Let us try to build great things: 1) I can set up a G7 meeting after Davos in Paris on Thursday afternoon. I can invite the Ukrainians, the Danish, the Syrians and the Russians in the margins 2) Let us have a dinner together in Paris together on Thursday before you go back to the us. Emmanuel.”
This week marks the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where world leaders converge to discuss global issues. Given the sheer number of problems on the table right now, one might assume there’s a good amount of work to be done.
What do you make of Trump publishing the private messages sent to him by Macron? Let us know in the comments.
