Trump to lead largest ever US delegation to Davos
President Donald Trump will attend the World Economic Forum in Davos next week as head of the largest ever US delegation to attend the annual meeting, including five cabinet members, and a host of congressional representatives and state governors.
The US leader will be one of at least 64 heads of state travelling to the Swiss mountain resort, including six out of seven G7 leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, but is likely to monopolise attention and the agenda.
Downing Street has not confirmed if Sir Keir Starmer will be attending.
Money blog: Royal Mail launching 24-hour parcel service
US Secretary of State Mark Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will accompany President Trump, along with his key international negotiators Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner. Some 20 members of Trump’s administration are expected to attend.
President Zelensky will join European Union President Ursula von der Leyen in Davos, with reports that a reconstruction deal for Ukraine may be agreed with the US during the week.
A large Chinese delegation will be led by vice-premier He Lifeng, who leads the country’s economic policy and heads the Central Financial Commission.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves will attend and is scheduled to hold a roundtable with business leaders hosted by JP Morgan boss Jamie Dimon, and speak on a public panel. The Treasury has characterised the trip as part of a renewed push to promote Britain as an investment destination around the world.
President Trump has not attended the WEF meeting in person for six years, but gave a virtual address last year on the day following his inauguration, in which he set out the ‘America First’ approach that has upended global trade and foreign relations in the 12 months since.
The American intervention in Venezuela earlier this month, with its unapologetic focus on controlling the country’s oil, has heightened economic and political uncertainty, making Davos a potential forum for negotiation and a guaranteed platform for Trump to underline his dominance of the international agenda.
Several Latin American leaders will be present, along with a strong presence from India, and the Middle East, including the transitional President of Syria, Ahmed Al-Sharaa, the Prime Minister of Lebanon, and delegations from Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE.
In his speech last year, President Trump put European leaders and manufacturing businesses on notice that they would face trade barriers if they chose not to shift construction to the US, a promise he honoured with the announcement of swingeing “Liberation Day” tariffs last April.
Many of those tariffs have been rolled back following bilateral negotiations, including by the UK, which secured lower barriers for the car industry than the EU.
