The meeting and venue were the same, but the style and tone of the two most anticipated keynote speeches at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in the Swiss town of Davos could not have been more different. On Tuesday, 20 January, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney addressed the assembled political and business leaders as one of them: a national leader with deep expertise in finance.
He spoke about a “rupture” in the world order and the duty of nations to come together through appropriate coalitions for the benefit of all. It was a paean to multilateralism, but one that recognised that the US would no longer provide the glue to hold alliances together. Carney never mentioned the US by name in his speech, instead talking of “great powers” and “hegemons”.
Carney’s quiet, measured and evocative case-making demonstrated his ability to be the leader France’s Emmanuel Macron would like to be and the UK’s Keir Starmer is too cautious to be. He was clear, unequivocal, and unafraid of the bully below his southern border. In standing up to US President Donald Trump, he appeared every inch the statesperson.