Europe must keep trying to work with Trump, WEF president says

  • The U.S. and EU are currently on track for a showdown over how to handle one of the linchpins of the global financial system following Trump's decision to re-impose tough economic sanctions on Iran.
  • "There is not enough cooperation and dialogue in the world today," Borge Brende, president of the World Economic Forum, told CNBC's Willem Marx on Thursday.

The president of the World Economic Forum (WEF) has urged European leaders to continue trying to find common ground with the President Donald Trump administration.

The U.S. and EU are currently on track for a showdown over how to handle one of the linchpins of the global financial system following Trump's decision to re-impose tough economic sanctions on Iran.

"We are in a situation where there is a more fractured world but in a more fractured world you have to incentivize more and closer cooperation," Borge Brende, president of the World Economic Forum, told CNBC's Willem Marx on Thursday.

"There is not enough cooperation and dialogue in the world today," he added.

Iran deal

Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel, and U.S. President Donald Trump shake hands, during their joint press conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Friday, April 27, 2018.
Cheriss May | NurPhoto via Getty Images
Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel, and U.S. President Donald Trump shake hands, during their joint press conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Friday, April 27, 2018.

EU leaders are rushing to find an alternative solution to the landmark Iran nuclear deal, after Trump announced the U.S. would withdraw from the multilateral pact earlier this month.

The U.S. president had often described the Iran nuclear accord as the "worst deal ever," while EU officials continue to believe it is vital for international security.

Alongside the foreign minister of Iran, the foreign ministers of France, Germany and the U.K. — all signatories of the Iran nuclear deal — gathered in Brussels on Tuesday to begin discussions on how to keep the accord alive.

When asked whether he believed the U.S. was largely responsible for the current challenges to the transatlantic relationship, Brende replied: "I think we all have to work with the current U.S. administration."

The WEF describes itself as the "international organization for public-private cooperation." Best known for its annual meeting in Davos, the Forum seeks to remain independent and impartial.