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Last week’s conferences at the World Economic Forum were perhaps the most tumultuous and drama-filled in its history. Overshadowed by President Donald Trump’s calls for Denmark to hand over Greenland, this year’s forum was far from the high-ranking networking conference of days past. Yet despite some hair-raising speeches from figures such as Donald Trump, Emmanuel Macron, Volodymyr Zelensky, Gavin Newsom, and a plethora of business and world leaders, this year’s standout speaker perhaps came from none other than Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
In his speech, Carney laid out the stark reality of today’s geopolitical landscape, where the “rules-based order is fading, the strong can do what they can, and the weak must suffer what they must.” He went on to state how global economic integration has been “weaponised” by some countries, forcing others to seek greater “autonomy” in critical infrastructure or face a world where “the rules no longer protect you.” Carney’s stoicism and blunt reality check earned him a standing ovation, an honour previously given only to Nelson Mandela and Volodymyr Zelensky.
Carney boasts an impressive résumé, even by the standards of world leaders. In 2008, he helped Canada mitigate the financial crisis while serving as Governor of the Bank of Canada, a feat he would repeat as Governor of the Bank of England during Brexit and the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. After a four-year stint in the private sector as Chair of Bloomberg and Vice-Chair of Brookfield Management, Carney returned to public service as Chair of the Liberal Party’s Task Force on Economic Growth, before being elected party leader in March 2025.
Since becoming Prime Minister, Carney has gained widespread support amid a rise in patriotic zeal across Canada. The Liberal Party secured a fourth consecutive minority victory against Pierre Poilievre’s heavily favoured Conservative Party, in large part due to President Trump’s condescending remarks toward America’s northern neighbour. Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire for Canada to become the U.S.’s “51st state,” while also threatening varying tariffs on Canada’s key exports, including oil, steel, and automotive products. These threats, and the Canadian government’s determination not to yield to such rhetoric, have boosted Carney’s support, which Reuters reports stands at a 62% approval rating.
Carney therefore arrived in Davos with greater experience in dealing with American brinkmanship than many of his European counterparts. While never directly referencing the U.S. in his speech, his remarks about “great powers” using “power as leverage” made clear whom he blamed for the disruption to global norms. But rather than calling for a return to the old order of American hegemony, Carney argued that “nostalgia is not a strategy.” He highlighted new markets Canada has pursued beyond U.S. influence, including trade with MERCOSUR, ASEAN, the EU, and China, despite Trump’s threats of imposing 100% tariffs should Canada deepen ties in East Asia. He also emphasised Canada’s economic strength, the country holds some of the largest reserves of natural gas and oil and is a leading developer of renewable energy sources such as hydrogen and nuclear power, positioning it as a global energy superpower.
While not all countries possess Canada’s vast territory and natural resources, Carney’s message was not limited to his country or its domestic economy. Rather, he demonstrated that clear and present disruptions to geopolitical norms require equally clear economic and diplomatic responses. “We must actively take on the world as it is, not wait around for a world we wish to be,” Carney concluded, a message world leaders would do well to consider amid an increasingly unreliable world order.
Edited by Emily Hone
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