 "Carney warns 'rules-based order fading', urges middle powers to unite at Davos")
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday warned that the erosion of the international rules-based order means middle-sized countries must stick together, delivering a thinly veiled critique of the US administration’s foreign policy and its use of punitive trade measures.
“It seems that every day we’re reminded that we live in an era of great power rivalry. That the rules-based order is fading – that the strong can do what they can, and the weak must suffer what they must,” CNN quoted Carney as saying in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Carney cautioned against the temptation for smaller and mid-sized countries to accommodate dominant powers in the hope of avoiding conflict.
“Faced with this logic, there is a strong tendency for countries to go along to get along – to accommodate, to avoid trouble, to hope that compliance will buy safety. Well, it won’t,” he said.
Without naming US President Donald Trump, the Canadian leader criticised major powers for turning economic tools into instruments of pressure, saying they have begun using “economic integration as weapons,” “tariffs as leverage,” and “supply chains as vulnerabilities to be exploited.”
Carney opposes Greenland tariffs
He singled out Washington’s stance on Greenland, saying, “Canada strongly opposes tariffs over Greenland, and calls for focused talks to achieve our shared objectives of security and prosperity in the Arctic.”
Trump on Saturday announced tariffs on imports from European allies that have opposed his push for the United States to take control of Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark.
Carney backed Denmark’s sovereignty over Greenland and reiterated Canada’s intent to build closer ties with like-minded partners as it manages a fraught relationship with the Trump administration in Washington.
Quick Reads
View AllTrump has previously floated the idea of annexing Canada and, earlier on Tuesday, shared an AI-generated image depicting a map that showed both Canada and Greenland as part of the United States.
“If great powers abandon even the pretense of rules and values for the unhindered pursuit of their power and interests, the gains from transactionalism will become harder to replicate,” Reuters quoted Carney as saying, without mentioning Trump or the US.
Carney, a former head of both the Bank of England and the Bank of Canada who struck a deal with China last week, said it was important for Canada to have a “web of connections”.
“There are very clear guard rails in that relationship,” Carney said of Canada’s deal with China.
“But within those clear guard rails are huge opportunities in energy, both clean and conventional … in agriculture, in financial services, all of which is mutually beneficial.”
Carney also warned that dominant states risk overreaching in their dealings with allies and global institutions.
“Hegemons cannot continually monetize their relationships,” he said.
Calling for greater coordination among middle powers, Carney said, “The middle powers must act together, because if we’re not at the table, we’re on the menu. We shouldn’t allow the rise of hard power to blind us to the fact that the power of legitimacy, integrity, and rules will remain strong, if we choose to wield them together.”
With inputs from agencies
 "'Prefer respect to bully': Macron mocks Trump with a punch in his Davos speech")
 "'Mother of all deals': EU close to sealing historic India trade pact, says Ursula at WEF")
 "US Supreme Court defers ruling on legal challenge to Trump’s global tariffs")
 "Watch: Macron in sunglasses at WEF speech, days after bloodshot eye was in spotlight")
 "'Prefer respect to bully': Macron mocks Trump with a punch in his Davos speech")
 "'Mother of all deals': EU close to sealing historic India trade pact, says Ursula at WEF")
 "US Supreme Court defers ruling on legal challenge to Trump’s global tariffs")
 "Watch: Macron in sunglasses at WEF speech, days after bloodshot eye was in spotlight")
