World Economic Forum 2025 kicks off in Davos amid heightened security
Nearly 5,000 Swiss army personnel have taken over the town for the week to ensure the safety of its high-profile visitors.
Nearly 5,000 Swiss army personnel have taken over the town for the week to ensure the safety of its high-profile visitors.
Nearly 5,000 Swiss army personnel have taken over the town for the week to ensure the safety of its high-profile visitors.
The World Economic Forum gets underway on Monday in Davos, Switzerland. Ahead of its commencement, the highest town in Europe has become synonymous with an annual gathering of the most powerful people in the world, requiring heavy-duty security cover.
Nearly 5,000 Swiss army personnel, including those equipped with the latest gadgets like drones and AI-powered tools, have taken over this small skiing resort town for the week to ensure the safety of its high-profile visitors and to ensure the successful completion of a rare annual confluence of the biggest names in the world, from business to government to civil society to art and culture and many others.
Donald Trump, who will be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States, will address the meeting virtually on January 23. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will attend the meeting and give a speech on January 21, according to the WEF organisers.
Indian leaders attending the forum include union ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw, CR Patil, K Ram Mohan Naidu, Chirag Paswan, and Jayant Chaudhary, chief ministers Devendra Fadnavis, N Chandrababu Naidu, and Revant Reddy, as well as ministers from other states and over 100 CEOs.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, China's Vice-Premier Ding Xuexiang, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Argentina President Javier Milei, European Parliament President Roberta Metsola, South Africa President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa, and Spain President Pedro Sanchez will be in attendance as well.
Additionally, Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter, Bangladesh Government's Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, Iraq President Abdulatif Rashid, Israel President Isaac Herzog, Malaysia President Anwar Ibrahim, Palestinian National Authority Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa, Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and Viet Nam PM Pham Minh Chinh will be there.
Armed conflict is the top risk in 2025, as indicated by a recent survey released by the World Economic Forum (WEF), which is a reminder of the deepening global fragmentation as government and business leaders attend an annual gathering in Davos today.
Nearly one in four of the more than 900 experts surveyed across academia, business and policymaking ranked conflict, including wars and terrorism, as the most severe risk to economic growth for the year ahead. Extreme weather, the no. 1 concern in 2024, was the second-ranked danger.
Amid strong global security tensions, the small Alpine resort town is witnessing thousands-strong army deployments, adding to a large number of police and civilian personnel.
In 2025, the armed forces will once again support the civilian authorities in the canton of Graubunden in carrying out security tasks in connection with the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF), the Swiss Armed Forces said in a statement.
(With inputs from PTI & Reuters)