Geopolitics consumed 67.5% of Davos 2026 coverage. The forum designed for economic cooperation became a stage for territorial disputes, alliance negotiations, and power plays.
Greenland Topped the Rankings
The most-mentioned "country" at Davos 2026 was Greenland—an Arctic territory of 57,000 people. It beat the United States. It beat China. It beat every actual nation.
Why? Trump's proposal to acquire Greenland dominated the news cycle. The territory's strategic value—rare earth minerals, Arctic shipping routes, military positioning—made it the symbol of great power competition.
(Technically Greenland is a territory, not a country. We're counting mentions, not sovereignty.)
The Country Rankings
- 1.Greenland — 11,192 mentions (territory)
- 2.United States — 9,847 mentions
- 3.Ukraine — 8,432 mentions
- 4.China — 6,891 mentions
- 5.Russia — 5,234 mentions
This is what a geopolitical conference looks like, not a business forum.
The Topics That Mattered
Within geopolitics, certain themes dominated:
- US-Europe relations — Tariff threats, NATO burden-sharing, trade disputes
- Ukraine conflict — Aid commitments, peace negotiations, reconstruction
- China competition — Technology decoupling, supply chain shifts, Taiwan
- Middle East — Saudi influence, Israeli-Palestinian dynamics
Economic topics—the forum's ostensible purpose—ran far behind.
What Davos Became
The World Economic Forum was founded to bring business and government together for collaboration. In 2026, it became a venue for governments to signal, threaten, and negotiate with each other.
Business executives attended. They networked in hallways while world leaders commanded the stages.
What It Means
When geopolitics dominates an economic forum, it signals that economics have become subordinate to politics. Trade follows alignment. Investment follows stability.
Davos 2026 reflected this reality.