Texts between Donald Trump, Jonas Støre, Emmanuel Macron and Mark Rutte

A series of text messages have been released between Donald Trump and European leaders about ownership of Greenland.

The US President pledged to tell European leaders at the forum to be held this week in Davos, Switzerland, that “we are going to have to get” Greenland.

Diplomacy has traditionally been seen as synonymous with discretion, and most of it remains behind closed doors.

But the latest discoveries fall into a different category.

Here are the letters in full and what experts told the BBC one should read:

Released by Støre’s office following a freedom of information request made by the BBC, 18 January at 15:48 (14:48 GMT)

Running store:

Dear Mr. President, dear Donald – on the transatlantic contact – on Greenland, Gaza, Ukraine – and your announcement of the tariffs yesterday.

You know our position on these issues. But we believe we should all work to end this and calm down – there is so much going on around us that we need to stand together.

We suggest you set up a call with us later today – with us or separately – to give us a glimpse into what you prefer! Best – Alex [on behalf of Finnish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb] And Jonas

Trump responded, January 18, at 16:15 (15:15 GMT):

Dear Jonas: Given that your country has decided not to give me the Nobel Peace Prize because it has stopped 8 wars in addition, I no longer feel an obligation to think purely about peace, even though it will always prevail, but I can now think about what is good and right for the United States of America.

Denmark can’t protect those lands from Russia or China, so why do they have “property rights” anyway?

There are no written documents, it is just that a boat landed there hundreds of years ago, but we have had boats landing there too. You have done more for NATO than anyone else since its founding, and now NATO must do something for the United States.

The world will not be safe unless we have full and complete control over Greenland. Thank you! President D.G.T

Former NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu told the BBC that this is evidence that “diplomatic norms have been changing for some time, and it is not limited to President Trump alone.”

“It’s somewhat unusual for private messages between leaders to be released publicly, but it’s part of President Trump’s tendency to practice diplomacy in public. You could say it’s the ultimate megaphone diplomacy.”

Mark Wheeler, a professor at the University of Cambridge who advises governments and international organizations, agrees with this view.

“Exchanges between governments at a high level are usually carefully crafted. This avoids misunderstandings and accidents when important points are responded to without due thought,” Wheeler says.

“This is not a problem for President Trump, who thrives on subverting expectations.”

But he points out that it is unusual for “quiet Norwegians to retaliate in kind – there is clearly a sense of having to fight fire with fire, as well as personal frustration about the loss of all forms of diplomacy.”

Posted by Trump on Truth Social, 19 January, at 17:01 (12:01 GMT):

From President Macron to President Trump

my friend,

We completely agree on Syria

We can do great things about Iran

I don’t understand what you’re doing in Greenland

Let’s try to build great things:

1) I can arrange a G7 meeting after Davos in Paris on Thursday afternoon. I can invite Ukrainians, Danes, Syrians and Russians to the margins

2) Let’s have dinner together in Paris together on Thursday before you return to the States

Emmanuel

Former French diplomat Francis Joseph Chechamps said the disclosure of Macron’s texts could be “embarrassing” for the president, because some parts were “scandalous.”

“At the beginning of the text, Macron clearly admits something he has not acknowledged publicly, which is that he did not understand Trump’s behavior with Greenland,” Cheshan said.

“I think it’s harmful because you don’t want to be exposed like that, so it’s very embarrassing.”

However, Cheshan pointed to Macron’s invitation to Trump for a G7 meeting [group of most industrialised countries] “It’s not embarrassing, it’s just something he should do.”

He added that the texts also show how “Macron is trying to deal with classic diplomacy,” warning that “this does not work with Trump because he put him on the social truth channel and the plan explodes.”

“This is another element of global diplomacy that is breaking down. You used to be able to have a one-on-one conversation in private, but now you don’t know if it’s going to end up on social media.”

Posted by Trump on Truth Social, January 20, at 01:53 (06:53 GMT):

Mr. President, dear Donald – What you have accomplished in Syria today is incredible. I will use my media engagements in Davos to highlight your work there, in Gaza, and in Ukraine.

I am committed to finding a way forward for Greenland. I can’t wait to see you.

Yours, Mark

Like Macron, Rutte’s private message to Trump that was revealed is “extraordinary,” says Lungescu, NATO’s longest-serving spokesman and now a senior fellow at the Royal United Services Institute’s (RUSI) defense think tank.

Lungescu said Rutte’s message is “consistent with what he says publicly and in private” — while other leaders “may appear stronger in public and more conciliatory in private.”

“So, there is a lot of risk that what was once private is no longer private,” she said, adding that “if people feel the temptation to appear powerful on social media, that could lead to more rhetorical escalation rather than working behind the scenes to find win-win solutions.”

“The space of diplomacy will focus on more phone calls and more face-to-face meetings,” Lungescu said. “In this case, it may take us back to traditional diplomacy.”

Mark Wheeler, also director of the International Law Program at think tank Chatham House and a former UN mediation expert, warns that “the tendency to publish as it happens makes any serious, discreet crisis diplomacy impossible as it in effect requires rapid and discreet action and dialogue.”