World order faces rupture, not transition, Canada PM at Davos

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Carney said countries like Canada long benefited from what was presented as a predictable global order.

“For decades, countries like Canada benefited from what was called the rules-based international order,” he said. “We joined its institutions. We praised its principles. We benefited from its predictability.” However, he added that “we knew the story was partially false.”

According to Carney, the strongest states often exempted themselves from the very rules they promoted.

“Trade rules were enforced asymmetrically,” he said, noting that international law was applied unevenly depending on who was involved. While the U.S.-led system delivered public goods such as open sea lanes and financial stability, he argued that these assumptions no longer hold.

Carney said today’s reality is shaped by intensifying rivalry among major powers, where economic integration itself is used as leverage.

“Call it what it is: a system of intensifying great power rivalry,” he said, warning that tariffs, financial infrastructure, and supply chains are increasingly weaponized.

For middle powers, accommodation offers no protection. “Compliance will buy safety. It won’t,” Carney said, stressing that collective action is essential. “If we’re not at the table, we’re on the menu.”

He urged governments to abandon nostalgia. “The old order is not coming back,” Carney said. “From the fracture, we can build something better, stronger, and more just.”

Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday that the U.S. plan to impose tariffs on the UK and other countries “is not the right way to resolve differences within an alliance,” adding that it is also unhelpful to frame efforts to strengthen Greenland’s security as a justification for economic pressure.