Mark Carney and his views on the changing world
Mark Carney's views on the changing world: This week, PM Carney spoke to the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting. The Prime Minister spoke about the “rupture” in international politics, making the case that the rules-based order that used to govern countries’ actions is vanishing. Creating an environment where powerful countries take what they want, often at the expense of others.
An Overview
Carney made that case that “middle powers”, like Canada, must ban together to create a new order centred on the shared values of human rights, sustainable development, solidarity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of states. He urged countries to make pragmatic moves that would strengthen their own sovereignty without isolating themselves.
“Middle powers must act together because if you are not at the table, you are on the menu.”
Two examples he gave are: Canada being part critical minerals buyer’s clubs anchored in the G7 so that the world can diversify away from concentrated supply and cooperating with like-minded democracies on AI to ensure countries will not be forced to “choose between hegemons and hyperscalers.”
PM Carney urged countries to stop pretending the old rules still applied and to face the fact that the international rules-based order was partially false and that aspects of it that previously helped countries were now being used against them. He specifically cited economic integration being used as a weapon through leveraging tariffs and exploiting supply chain vulnerability.
He closed by inviting other countries to work with Canada on forging this new path forward.
“This is the task of the middle powers, who have the most to lose from a world of fortresses and the most to gain from a world of genuine cooperation.”
His address inspired a lot of positive commentary from world leaders, including Jim Chalmers, Australia’s Treasury Minister[1] and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.[2] It also elicited some unfriendly responses from President Donald Trump and U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who called the speech “political noise”.[3]
[1] Jim Chalmers says Canadian PM’s ‘stunning’ denunciation of Trump is being widely discussed in Australian government | Australian foreign policy | The Guardian
[2] Carney’s Davos speech strikes a chord in Mexico | CBC News
[3] National Newswatch | Lutnick calls Carney’s speech ‘political noise’