Zelensky changes tone: He sharply attacks European leaders and criticizes the deployment of Danish troops. This is how the Danish Foreign Minister responded.

The Ukrainian president launched a scathing attack during a press conference he held in Davos on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum, just over an hour after his meeting with former US President Donald Trump, in a tone that seemed completely different from his usual diplomatic discourse. The DR article used Zelensky’s description as having “taken off his velvet gloves” and launched an unusually harsh attack on European leaders, expressing his impatience with what he described as Europe’s preoccupation with the Greenland issue, at a time when Russia, in his words, is trying to “freeze Ukrainians to death.”.

Danish donations to Ukraine have exceeded $9 billion.

It is worth noting that the total direct Danish support to Ukraine until the end of 2025 is estimated at approximately US$9.1 billion for military, humanitarian and civilian support, and this huge amount may not reflect all the military equipment and the in-kind value of the equipment that has been supplied in previous years.

Ukrainian anger escalates

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as reported by DR, expressed his growing frustration with the European stance, asserting that the continent remains "stuck in Greenland," while the war in Ukraine continues unchanged. He stated that a full year has passed without any real shift in the situation, adding that everyone is focused on Greenland without anyone knowing how to address the issue.

The Ukrainian president criticized what he considered European waiting for the United States' position, wondering what would happen if this tension did not disappear or if the American position did not calm down, in reference to the absence of an independent European initiative.

Criticism of the deployment of Danish troops in Greenland

Zelenskyy broadened his criticism to include the European decision to send a limited number of troops to Greenland as part of Operation Arctic Endurance, noting the deployment of approximately 40 Danish soldiers to the region last week. He sharply questioned the effectiveness of this number, arguing that 40 soldiers could not actually protect anything.

The Ukrainian president raised direct questions about the messages this move sends to Russian President Vladimir Putin and to China, stressing that such a deployment does not constitute a real deterrent and does not reflect effective military power.

Europe is called upon to defend itself

Volodymyr Zelensky called on Europe to learn how to defend itself, arguing that the continent is still seen more as a geographical area, history and culture, and not as a real political force or a superpower capable of making decisive decisions.

He pointed out that some European countries are indeed strong, but he criticized the mentality of dependence on others, explaining that many talk about the need to stand strong, but at the same time they are always waiting for someone else to tell them how long they should continue in this position, and this is often related to upcoming elections.

Calls for the confiscation of Russian assets and accusations of double standards

The Ukrainian president then turned to the issue of international justice, sharply criticizing Europe for not directly seizing frozen Russian assets, which he estimated to be worth over 200 billion euros. He asserted that Europe always finds something more important than justice.

Zelensky contrasted the prosecution of some leaders before international courts, such as Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, with the fact that Russian President Vladimir Putin has not yet been brought to justice, considering this a double standard.

The Danish Foreign Minister's stance on Zelensky's statements

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen commented on Zelensky's remarks, stating that the Ukrainian president was largely correct in his criticisms. DR quoted Rasmussen, who had arrived in Stockholm that evening, as saying that he had tried to convey this sense of frustration by emphasizing that Greenland is an important issue on Denmark's agenda, but so is Ukraine.

The Danish Foreign Minister stressed that any deterioration in the situation in Ukraine would lead to security pressures affecting everyone, emphasizing the close link between the security of Ukraine and the security of Europe as a whole.

Positive meeting between Zelensky and Trump

Despite the severity of the criticism, Volodymyr Zelenskyy indicated at the end of the press conference that his meeting with Donald Trump was “good,” attributing the credit to Trump, without going into further details about the content of the meeting.

Praise for a French military move in the Mediterranean

In a related development, Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised the French navy on Tuesday evening after it intercepted a Russian oil tanker in the Mediterranean Sea that was subject to international sanctions. The Ukrainian president, in a statement published on the X platform, described the move as “precisely the kind of firmness needed” to prevent Russia from using oil revenues to finance its war in Ukraine.

He stressed that the Russian ships should be stopped, questioning whether it was fair to confiscate and sell the oil they were carrying, a move that would further tighten the economic noose around Moscow.