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Early Start with Rahel Solomon

European Allies Push Back On U.S. Pressure Over Greenland; Europe Weighs Options Amid Threat Of Trade War With U.S.; Bondi Visits Minneapolis As DOJ Subpoenas State Officials. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired January 21, 2026 - 04:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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[04:00:31]

RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning and welcome to our viewers joining us from the U.S. and all around the world. I'm Rahel Solomon. And straight ahead on "Early Start."

After a problem with Air Force One, President Trump is finally on his way to face NATO allies in Switzerland. The same allies he's been threatening over Greenland.

And concerns over Greenland and tariffs front and center on Wall Street as the major averages had their worst day of the new year.

And why David and Victoria Beckham's son says he doesn't want anything to do with his famous parents?

Well, it is just over 10:00 A.M. in Davos, Switzerland. That's where U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to arrive later this morning. He will address the World Economic Forum amid growing tensions with NATO and European allies over his threats to take control of Greenland.

The president's trip was delayed when Air Force One turned back to the U.S. shortly after takeoff because of what the White House called a minor electrical issue with the plane. He boarded a different plane which took off just after midnight eastern time.

And here's what he said as he left the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So I'm going to Davos. I believe it'll be very successful. The trip -- this will be an interesting trip. I have no idea what's going to happen, but you are well-represented.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: Sources tell CNN that European leaders are considering their options, hoping to provide something of an off-ramp for Trump when it comes to Greenland. They include an expanded U.S. military presence on the island, commercial and economic agreements, and barring Chinese investment in the territory.

President Trump is predicting that he can work out a deal that's, quote, very good for everybody.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I've done more for NATO than anybody and I see all this stuff, but NATO has to treat us fairly too. The big fear I have with NATO is we spend tremendous amounts of money with NATO.

And I know we'll come to their rescue, but I -- I just really do question whether or not they'll come to ours. You know, I'm just asking. Just saying, right? Do you remember during the debate? Just saying.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: Other world leaders, though, appear united in the face of these geopolitical tensions. Even as President Trump warns, there's no turning back on his plans for Greenland.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

URSULA VON DER LEYEN, PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION: The threat of additional tariffs for security reasons is simply wrong.

(APPLAUSE)

If we are now plunging into a dangerous downward spiral between allies, this would only embolden the very adversaries we are both so committed to keeping out of the strategic landscape.

EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT: It's as we'll shift towards a world without rules, where international law is trampled underfoot, and where the only laws that seems to matter is that of the strongest and imperial ambitions are resurfacing.

MARK CARNEY, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: It seems that every day we're reminded that we live in an era of great power rivalry. That the rules based order is fading, that the strong can do what they can and the weak must suffer what they must.

The middle powers must act together because if we're not at the table, we're on the menu.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: All right. Let's bring in CNN's senior international correspondent, Melissa Bell, who joins us live this morning from Paris.

Melissa, as we said, Trump is expected to land in Davos in just a few hours. What can we expect from this trip? MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: He's going to be landing, Rahel, as a result of those minor electrical difficulties on the plane with three hours delay.

We understand he, of course, will be making a speech to Davos, but he's also going to be having this really important meeting with some of those European countries that have been involved in the reinforced security of Greenland these last couple of weeks in solidarity with Denmark. And that meeting promises to be testy.

What we've seen over the course of the last few days is not just President Trump, as you just said, as he left the United States on his way to Europe, repeating his claim that he would go all in for Greenland.

But on the other hand, and you heard a number of leaders there speaking yesterday at the economic forum, the fact that with a great deal more firmness, perhaps, than they had in the past and with the threat of countermeasures, Europeans are preparing to show very forcefully that they intend to stand behind the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Greenland.

[04:05:15]

Now, there is a new proposal from the French that some kind of NATO military exercise might be organized in Greenland, a way of reminding the United States and the American president that the NATO alliance is the best sort of framework for working out any potential disagreements with all the potential that there is, of course, for some kind of negotiated compromise to be found the existing treaties it is being suggested in frantic meetings behind the scenes of European and American officials could be expanded to allow not just more military, a greater military presence by the United States in Greenland, but some kind of extra economic or commercial benefits that they might be able to draw with some sort of signing ceremony that will allow the American president to show that he'd achieved something with all of this belligerent rhetoric that we've seen ratcheted up over the last couple of weeks.

All of these options are being considered, even as Europeans have made it very clear that they are preparing to act much more forcefully than they have in the past.

In fact, only yesterday, Rahel, the ratification of the treaty that was signed during the last round of the tariff for between the United States and Europe last summer, that was paused because European parliamentarians say that they cannot continue that ratification process even as they're being threatened with extra tariffs.

So a lot of play, a lot of heated discussion, no doubt today, but it is hoped from Europeans that there is room for compromise still even as they prepare to act firmly, Rahel.

SOLOMON: As Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says that everyone should sit down and listen to his argument. We will hear what those arguments are. No doubt, shortly. Melissa Bell, live for us there in Paris. Melissa, thank you.

The president's pursuit of Greenland has rattled not only political leaders, but also business leaders in financial markets.

Let's go to CNN's Anna Cooban who is live in London with more on that. Anna, good morning.

So talk to us about how European markets are now reacting to Trump's desired grip on Greenland.

ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS REPORTER: Well, European markets, unsurprisingly this week, have fallen. They're up slightly today coming off some lows.

But U.S. markets, they were open yesterday for the first time since this weekend's events since these new tariff threats. And they performed quite badly. We saw a sell-off of stocks, bonds and the U.S. dollar.

The S&P 500 and the NASDAQ both down over two percent. In fact, all three major indices, including the Dow, had the worst days since October 10th, which was a day that Trump had threatened tariffs against China.

But just taking a step back, the reason why investors are so concerned by this is because we're really -- they're -- they're back to square one in -- in their eyes.

You know, there were blood, sweat, and tears expended last year by the E.U. and the U.S. try and score that tentative trade deal.

Now, the whole future of that is completely thrown into doubt. And let's remind ourselves that tariffs are import taxes. They tend to raise the cost of the final product.

And American consumers, American businesses, often end up paying that. And that, therefore, raises the prospect of inflation ticking up. There are so many unknowns and potential downstream negative impacts here.

But U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was in Davos this morning trying to pour cold water on some of those fears. This is what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTT BESSENT, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: I would tell everyone, take a deep breath. Do not have this reflexive anger that we've seen and this -- the bitterness.

Why don't they sit down, wait for President Trump to get here and listen to his argument? Because I think they're going to be persuading.

(END VIDEO CLIP) COOBAN: So leaders are really, really watching. Going to be watching very closely Trump's speech. Whether or not they'll be persuaded is yet to be seen.

But we do know that some European leaders, including Macron of France, are very prepared to deploy what he calls this trade bazooka, this set of economic penalties, which has never been levied before against any other country or trading bloc, particularly non-ally, like the United States.

SOLOMON: And so give us a sense of -- of more of the reaction from business leaders. I mean, obviously, world leaders are there. We'll be sitting and listening and -- and waiting to see if they can be persuaded, as Scott Bessent says.

But what are we hearing from other business leaders who stand to be impacted by any potential tariffs from the U.S. and the new retaliatory tariffs from the -- the European side of things?

COOBAN: Well, Schneider Electric, a European manufacturer, was talking with CNN's Richard Quest earlier this week and was talking about how, you know, tariffs create massive amounts of uncertainty. And certainly these European businesses will be bearing the -- the brunt of those.

Different countries within the European bloc will be impacted differently. Germany, a huge manufacturer, an exporter would be impacted more than another country.

But then the World Economic Forum does this global risk report every year, and it's come out today. And it looks like it's a survey of -- of many business leaders. And it looks like only one percent, according to this survey are expecting a calm over the next couple of years, half are expecting turbulent times. And that uncertainty is really bad for business and really bad for markets.

[04:10:16]

SOLOMON: OK. Anna Cooban live for us there in London. Anna, thank you.

I'll now bring in to the conversation Anders Fogh Rasmussen, former NATO secretary general and the former prime minister of Denmark. He joins us live this morning from Davos. Anders, wonderful to have you this morning.

I want to just first get your reaction to something that treasury secretary just said a short time ago. We played a small clip of it there, but he said, I would tell everyone, take a deep breath. Do not have reflexive anger. We've seen this bitterness. Why don't they sit down? Wait for Trump to get here. Listen to his argument. I think they are going to be persuaded.

What could Trump say that could persuade Denmark, Greenland and European leaders who are watching?

ANDERS FOGH RASMUSSEN, FORMER PRIME MINISTER OF DENMARK: Well, I think first of all, now we need a more constructive dialogue of how we can accommodate the concerns of the American president.

I think time of flattery has ended. You will see a more firm European response to the outburst against Greenland. And that's why we need a more constructive dialogue now. And it is possible to accommodate the concerns of President Trump without his desire to acquire Greenland.

SOLOMON: Is it possible to have a constructive dialogue if it's only a one-way street? I mean, do you expect to hear more of a constructive tone from President Trump?

RASMUSSEN: Well, I think we should table three proposals to Q1. Firstly, we should suggest to renew the old defense agreement between Denmark and the U.S. dating back to 1951 with the aim to pave the way for a more permanent NATO presence in Greenland and the Arctic.

Secondly, we should conclude an investment agreement with the aim to attract more private investment in rare earth than other critical minerals.

And thirdly, we should conclude a stabilization and resilience compact, including some screening mechanisms that de facto would prevent Chinese and Russian investments in critical infrastructure in Greenland.

I think those three areas would accommodate the Trump concerns without an American acquisition of Greenland.

SOLOMON: And so do you believe that -- and -- and -- and some Republicans have said that this is just the beginning of a negotiation. This is classic art of the deal. Do you believe that that's what's happening here?

RASMUSSEN: Well, we do know that President Trump pursues negotiation tactics that are not usually used in international politics.

But the problem here is that the way he's conducting this is eroding the transatlantic relationship. It's creating a lack of trust. And what we need now is more unity, it's more strength, it's more force against the advancing autocracies, in particular, Xi Jinping and Putin.

SOLOMON: You know, I'm curious as a former prime minister of Denmark, what does the potential annexation of Greenland mean to you personally?

I'm just wondering how you have been sort of processing the -- the increasing rhetoric of this term around the U.S. potentially acquiring Greenland.

RASMUSSEN: Yes. For me, it's a painful process. Since childhood, I have admired the United States. As a politician, at least as prime minister and secretary general of NATO, I worked closely with the United States' presidents. I have always considered the U.S. a natural leader of the free world. So for me, it's a very painful process. And I think for many Europeans, exactly the same. So this whole process will accelerate European considerations as to how we can make Europe more independent both of the United States, China and other countries. We have to be able to stand on our own feet.

SOLOMON: And what does this mean for the alliance? I mean, if in fact the U.S. pushes forward with these plans to acquire Greenland. I mean, is -- is NATO effectively over?

[04:15:07]

RASMUSSEN: Yes. If the United States initiates a military action against Greenland, it would be the end of NATO. It doesn't make sense to have a collective defense organization if a major ally attacks another ally just to acquire territory.

So, in that case, we would have to build our own European NATO, build on a Coalition of the Willing and non-European countries that are capable and willing to do what is needed to protect Europe.

SOLOMON: And then the irony, of course, is that, I mean, what -- how would that be perceived in China and Russia, if that, in fact, is what happens?

RASMUSSEN: Yes. But I think the only winners of this transatlantic split we're now witnessing are Putin and Xi Jinping. I think Putin hopes that Greenland can be the iceberg that sinks NATO.

SOLOMON: Sir, we appreciate your time this morning. That's Anders Fogh Rasmussen. Appreciate the time, sir. Thank you.

RASMUSSEN: Thank you for having me.

SOLOMON: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who has now accepted Donald Trump's invitation to join the U.S. President's so- called Board of Peace. The committee is meant to oversee the reconstruction of Gaza.

Israel was one of dozens of countries to receive an invitation in recent days. Russia and China were also asked to participate. Sources say that President Trump is expected to host a signing ceremony in Davos this week.

Still to come for us, the Trump administration is accusing Minnesota's democratic leaders of blocking their attempts to carry out immigration enforcement. We'll have the details on the state official's response, straight ahead.

Plus, protests against President Trump's crackdown on immigration. Details on the demonstrations marking one year of his second term, coming up next.

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[04:20:30] SOLOMON: Welcome back. I want to take you now to a panel in Davos, Switzerland. That's where the secretary general of NATO is speaking alongside the presidents of Finland and Poland about Europe's ability to defend itself. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK RUTTE, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: We know that China and Russia are increasingly active in the Arctic. There are eight countries bordering on the Arctic. Seven are a member of NATO. That's Finland, Sweden, and Norway and Denmark, Iceland, Canada and the U.S. And there's only one country bordering on the Arctic outside NATO and that's Russia.

And I would argue there is a ninth country which is China, which is increasingly active in the Arctic region.

So, President Trump and other leaders are right. We have to do more there. We have to protect the Arctic against Russian and Chinese influence.

This is exactly what NATO ambassadors decided to do in September. We are working on that, making sure that, collectively, we'll defend the Arctic region.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'd like to turn to Poland now. You have traditionally been furiously pro-American in terms of, you know, efforts to keep them on board as a guarantor of security in Europe.

You've turned the term to the Greenland dispute.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: OK. We'll continue to keep one ear on that.

In the meantime, we do want to get to some other news this morning.

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi made an unannounced visit to Minnesota Tuesday and she's sending this warning to the state's top leaders.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAM BONDI, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: Whether it's a public official, whether it's a law enforcement officer, no one is above the law in this state or in this country. And people will be held accountable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: Her visit comes the same day that at least five top Minnesota officials, all of them, Democrats, received Justice Department subpoenas.

Sources say that the agency is investigating whether they obstructed federal immigration enforcement efforts in the state.

Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey say that they will not be intimidated into silence. Meanwhile, President Trump is defending his administration's surge of federal agents in Minnesota. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: They're apprehending murderers and drug dealers and a lot of bad people. And these are just some of the more recent ones that we have.

And I can show you some of the people, vicious. Many of them murderers. These are all out of Minnesota, just Minnesota. I say, why don't you talk about that more?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: Federal border patrol officials say that protests are making their work in Minnesota difficult.

Minnesota's governor has repeatedly urged protesters to demonstrate peacefully. But a top CBP official is blaming Governor Tim Walz and the mayor of Minneapolis for the demonstrations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GREG BOVINO, BORDER PATROL OFFICIAL: Leaders like Tim Walz or Mayor Frey have relied on heated rhetoric and accusations that distract -- that distract from the facts.

And what we do is legal, ethical, and moral. Everything we do every day is legal, ethical, moral, well-grounded in law.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: State officials dispute the Trump administration's narrative that protesters are provoking the violence.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TINA SMITH (D-MN): What you see from the mayors and from the governor is just a very solid calm response saying, we are focused on keeping our communities safe. We are focusing on standing up for Minnesota values. And that's where we're going to continue to be focused.

And I really applaud that. I mean, people coming out of their homes to stand up for folks that are literally being dragged out of their cars. It's really incredible to see that. And it makes me really proud.

(PROTESTING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[04:25:09]

SOLOMON: High school and college students around the country participated in a nationwide school walkout to protest the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.

Some student protesters in Atlanta chanted "No ICE," while others carried anti-ICE signs and banners.

And this was the scene in the nation's capital, Washington, D.C. The demonstrations on Tuesday mark the one-year anniversary of the start of President Trump's second term.

Still ahead for us, Donald Trump ramps up the pressure on NATO just before departing for Davos. The latest on the president's trip, when we come back.

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