Canada’s Prime Minister, Mark Carney, spoke at the World Economic Forum in Davos Switzerland, about big changes in world politics. He told world leaders that the old global order, a set of rules countries used to follow for peace and trade is breaking into pieces.
Carney used a simple sentence to explain his point: “We are in the midst of a rupture, not a transition.” He meant that the world is not slowly changing, but rather seeing a sharp break from the past. He said the system that kept many countries secure after World War II is now under pressure.
What Is the “Old Order”?
For many years, after World War II, the United States and its allies helped to keep world politics stable. They did this by creating rules and systems that made trade easier, supported peace agreements, and kept open travel and shipping lanes across oceans. Many countries, including Canada, benefited from this system.
Carney says that this “rules-based” order is slowly disappearing. Big powers such as the United States, China, and others are now competing with each other in ways that are stronger and less predictable. Sometimes they use trade rules, money, and supply chains to push for their own interests instead of helping everyone fairly.
He warned that smaller and developing countries can no longer expect safety just because they followed the old rules and stayed close to big powers. Rather than, nations must work together and find new ways to build cooperation and peace.
Carney’s Message at Davos
Carney’s speech came at a difficult time in global politics. The United States, under President Donald Trump, had been taking a more aggressive steps with allies in Europe and in the Arctic. There have been threats of tariffs and moves toward Greenland, and this has caused disagreement among many countries.
Even though Carney did not name Trump directly in his speech, his words reflected concern about how strong countries are using power in ways that hurt smaller nations and break the old rules to benefit themselves.
Carney said that when powerful countries consider their personal interests more important, rules and partnerships no longer matter. In that situation, he said, nations must think differently and not just depend on old friends and agreements.
What Carney Wants for the Future
Carney did not say that the world should go back to the old order. Instead, he said that countries like Canada should help shape a new kind of global cooperation. He encourged that countries must stay true to values such as:
· respect for human rights
· peace and security
· shared rules that help many nations, not just the strongest
He used a simple idea to make his point clear to everyone:
“If we are not at the table, we are on the menu”
This means that if countries do not work together and help to shape the future, strong countries might control them.
Why This Matters
Carney’s speech was one of the most talked-about moments at Davos. It showed that even leaders of stable countries are worried about how global politics is changing. Many people at the event agreed that the world is moving into a new dangerous era, one where old ways of cooperation may no longer work, and new ones must be built.
For people everywhere, this means watching how countries deal with each other, how trade and global rules are changing, and how smaller nations work together in a fast-changing world. Observers said Carney’s warning may be one of the clearest signals yet that global politics is entering a very different phase.
