In his Jan. 20, 2026 speech at the World Economic Forum, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney recognized that "multilateral institutions [...] are under threat" and that current crises have "laid bare the risks of extreme global integration."
He recognized that "the story of the international rules-based order was partially false." "You cannot live within the lie of mutual benefit through integration, " he said, "when integration becomes the source of your subordination."
What should the Government of Canada do? Carney suggested that Canada, as an "intermediate" or "middle power" should "hear the wake-up call, leading us to fundamentally shift our strategic posture" to "build a new order that encompasses our values."
Canada, he said, should find "different coalitions for different issues based on common values and interests." This, he said, "is not naive multilateralism, nor is it relying on their institutions. It's building coalitions that work – issues by issue, with partners who share enough common ground to act together." "We can build something bigger, better, stronger, more just," he said; "This is the task of the middle powers, the countries that have the most to lose from a world of fortresses and most to gain from genuine cooperation."
