‘Rupture in the world order’: Speeches by Carney, world leaders at Davos

As world leaders, including allies of the United States, gather in the Swiss resort city of Davos for the World Economic Forum (WEF), US President Donald Trump’s attacks on the existing global world order have been on the top of their minds with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney saying the US-led global system is enduring “a rupture”.

Trump’s threat to take over Greenland, by force if necessary, has roiled his European allies, who have pushed back against the US president’s policies of using brute force to achieve his foreign policy goals. On January 3, US forces abducted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and took him to the US in a military operation that sent shockwaves across the world.

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• list 1 of 1US allies unite against Trump’s threats to take over Greenland at Davos

Trump has threatened to impose new tariffs on European nations if they oppose him on Greenland.

The European Union’s top official called the proposed tariffs a “mistake” while the Canadian prime minister warned that middle powers risk being sidelined if they fail to act together.

Here are the key takeaways of Tuesday’s WEF meetings:

Carney said the world’s middle powers must unite to resist coercion by aggressive superpowers, warning that traditional assumptions about global order no longer hold.

“If great powers abandon even the pretence of rules and values for the unhindered pursuit of their power and interests, the gains from transactionalism will become harder to replicate.”

“So we’re engaging broadly, strategically with open eyes,” he said. “We actively take on the world as it is, not wait around for a world we wish to be.”

The Canadian leader dismissed the notion of a global system built around “American hegemony” as a “fiction”, arguing that multilateralism is fading as institutions including the World Trade Organization and the United Nations are “greatly diminished”.

“Canadians know that our old, comfortable assumption that our geography and alliance memberships automatically conferred prosperity and security is no longer valid,” Carney said. “Let me be direct. 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,” Carney added.

He said “middle powers”, including Canada, must cooperate with one another because “if you are not at the table, you are on the menu.”

“Nostalgia is not a strategy. But we believe that from the fracture, we can build something bigger, better, stronger, more just.”

Turning to Greenland, Carney said:

“Canada strongly opposes tariffs over Greenland and calls for focused talks to achieve our shared objectives of security and prosperity in the Arctic.”

France’s Macron: ‘We prefer respect to bullies’

French President Emmanuel Macron used his speech in Davos to denounce Trump’s threat to impose tariffs to pressure European countries over Greenland.

Macron described the “endless accumulation” of new tariffs as fundamentally unacceptable, “even more so when they are used as leverage against territorial sovereignty”, he said.

Wearing aviator sunglasses during his address, which the Elysee Palace said were to protect his eyes after a burst blood vessel, Macron joked:

“It’s a time of peace, stability and predictability,” prompting laughter from the audience.

He then struck a more serious tone.

“It’s clear we are reaching a time of instability, of imbalances,” the French president continued. “More than 60 wars in 2024, an absolute record, even if I understand a few of them were fixed.”

French President Emmanuel Macron warned of a ‘world without rules’ at the World Economic Forum ‘where international law is trampled underfoot and where the only laws it seems to matter is that of the strongest’ [Denis Balibouse/Reuters]

Macron concluded by outlining his vision for Europe’s role in addressing global challenges:

“We will be committed during 2026 to try to deliver this global agenda in order to fix global imbalances through more cooperations, and we will do our best in order to have a stronger Europe,” he said.

“Here, in the epicentre of this continent, we do believe that we need more growth, we need more stability in this world.”

He called for Europe to strengthen its trade defence instrument while at the same time sought investment, including from China, the world’s second largest economy.

“China is welcome, but what we need is more Chinese foreign direct investments in Europe in some key sectors to contribute to our growth, to transfer some technologies and not just to export towards Europe,” he said.

Speaking about Greenland he said: “We have decided to join a mutual exercise in Greenland without threatening anyone but just supporting an ally and another European country, Denmark.”

He ended his speech by saying: We do prefer respect to bullies. We do prefer science to plotism, and we do prefer rule of law to brutality. You are welcome in Europe, and you are more than welcome to France.”

EU’s Ursula von der Leyen: ‘Nostalgia will not bring back the old order’

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said a series of recent geopolitical shocks will force the EU to build a more independent Europe.

“The good news is we acted immediately. Whether on energy or raw materials, defence or digital, we’re moving fast.”

But she cautioned that the EU “will only be able to capitalise on this opportunity if we recognise that this change is permanent”.

“Of course, nostalgia is part of our human story, but nostalgia will not bring back the old order.”

Von der Leyen also said the EU was close to concluding a free trade agreement with India although further work was still needed to finalise the deal.

“We are on the cusp of a historic trade agreement,” she said.

“Some call it the mother of all deals, one that would create a market of 2 billion people accounting for almost a quarter of global GDP.”

Von der Leyen is expected to visit India early next week.

The European Commission president also said the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Denmark and Greenland are nonnegotiable.

“We are working on a package to support Arctic security,” she said, adding that the EU is also preparing a “massive European investment surge in Greenland” to support the local economy and infrastructure.

China’s He: ‘China’s development presents an opportunity’

China’s development is an opportunity rather than a threat, and Beijing is ready to use its market strengths to share growth with other countries, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng said at the World Economic Forum.

“China’s development presents an opportunity, not a threat, to the global economy,” He said, adding that disputes and misunderstandings in international trade should be addressed through “equal consultation” to build trust, bridge differences and resolve problems.

He also stressed that China would continue to open up its economy.

“China will open its door still wider to the world,” he said, pledging to align this policy with high-standard international economic and trade rules.

He said China would further foster a market-oriented, law-based and internationalised business environment and ensure equal treatment for domestic and foreign companies.

“We welcome foreign enterprises to continue investing in China and sharing in China’s opportunities,” He said while urging other governments to provide a fair, nondiscriminatory, transparent and predictable investment environment for Chinese businesses.

Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng says, ‘The future of the world hinges on cooperation,’ in Davos, Switzerland [Denis Balibouse/Reuters]