They decided to skip their turn. This year, Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron does not intersect not at Davos, on the occasion of the economic Forum annual which takes place from 22 to 25 January. While the ski resort switzerland expects 3000 participants, including 65 heads of State or government, the presidents american and French, but also the first british minister Theresa May, are retained by the internal affairs.
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Donald Trump announced last week on Twitter that he would not go – in a rare event for an american president in a year -unlike last year, which had been the occasion for him to defend his economic program. And he will not even deputized. The White House announced Thursday that the displacement of the delegation was to be led by the secretary of the Treasury, Steven Mnuchin, and the secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, was simply cancelled.
The reason? The “shutdown”, which has shut down since December 22, a quarter of us federal agencies, due to the budgetary stalemate in the us Congress, where democrats oppose the funding of the wall that Donald Trump intends to build on the mexican border. “In consideration for 800,000 american government employees great who do not receive a salary and to be able to rely on his team if necessary, the president, Trump has canceled the travel of its delegation to the world economic Forum in Davos,” explains the spokesperson of the White House, Sarah Sanders, in a press release.
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“heavy Agenda”
another absence will be noticed this year, that of Emmanuel Macron. Due to a “heavy agenda”, the Government reported last week that the French president will not participate no longer in the Forum. Very busy in particular by the crisis of the “yellow vests” and the introduction of the great national debate, the head of the State will “intercept” as last year the bosses of multinational companies on the road to Switzerland, at the “peak of attractiveness” which will be held in Versailles on 21 January, the eve of the kickoff of the appointment of Davos.
The first british minister, Theresa May, has also declined the invitation. Priority to the Brexit. “It’s going to focus on folders here”, announced on Thursday a spokesperson for the government. After the rejection of the agreement of the output of Britain from the european Union and a motion of censure narrowly avoided, Theresa May should go back to meps on Monday with a solution, which could then be subject to vote before January 30. It is his Finance minister, Philip Hammond, who will attempt, instead, to reassure business leaders.
Other big absentees of the annual rendezvous of the high society of the capitalism, the presidents of the Russian federation, indian and chinese. Xi Jinping, the first chinese president to visit Davos in 2017 where he had delivered a powerful plea for free trade and globalization, will appoint in his place his right arm, the vice-president Wang Qishan.
First international release for Bolsonaro
Only three leaders of the G7 will be present: the japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, German chancellor Angela Merkel and the president of the Italian Council, Giuseppe Conte. Davos will also be the first major international release by the president of the brazilian extreme right-wing Jair Bolsonaro.
But this is not because the number of heads of State and government did not go to Davos this year that the forum has lost its aura, argue some experts. For business leaders, behind the scenes of this Forum are more important than its public events. “This is the best place to expose its ideas, create a network and make themselves known,” observes Chen Linchevski, patron of Preconize, an israeli start-up. “This is the kind of place where we meet in a few days of people that it would be difficult to see in other circumstances”, he adds. And even if there was “less of royalty than a year past,” those who will be there, “will restore confidence and calm business leaders and investors”, wants to believe Nariman Behravesh, chief economist of IHS Markit.
