Why it matters:
Carney's pointed remarks highlight middle powers' challenges amidst Trump's trade policies, which have reshaped global alliances. These policies include tariffs, linking trade to political alignment, using market access as leverage, supply-chain changes favoring U.S. production, reduced multilateral engagement, and transactional diplomacy using economic pressure.
The big picture:
Carney framed today’s geopolitical landscape as a rupture in the global system, not a temporary disruption: multilateral institutions- WTO, UN, COP- are losing authority, great powers are increasingly weaponizing trade, finance, technology, and supply chains, and countries are turning inward, building “fortresses” of self‑reliance, sovereignty is shifting from rules to resilience - the ability to withstand pressure, middle powers must band together or risk being dominated in a world of hard‑power rivalry.
What he's saying:
Carney argued that legitimacy, integrity, and shared rules still matter, but only if countries actively build new frameworks rather than waiting for the old order to return. Carney said Canada is abandoning long‑held assumptions that geography, alliances, and U.S.-led institutions automatically guarantee security and prosperity. He argued that great powers now use economic integration as coercion, forcing countries like Canada to diversify, harden their economies, and form flexible coalitions.
Key quotes:
- “We are in the midst of a rupture, not a transition.”
- “You cannot live within the lie of mutual benefit through integration when integration becomes the source of your subordination.”
- “If middle powers aren’t at the table, they’re on the menu.”
- “We are taking the sign out of the window. The old order is not coming back.”
Between the lines:
Carney’s speech signals a broader trend: Middle powers are no longer speaking in the cautious language of the past. They are openly acknowledging that the U.S.-led post‑Cold War order has ended, and that they must craft a new one.
Go deeper:
U.S.-Canada Trade Tensions Rise as Trump Halts Negotiations
Hossein Amiri - A.Akbari
