Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney sounded more like a populist leader than a former central banker during his address at the World Economic Forum in Davos on 20 January. Bemoaning the “fading” of the rules-based order, Carney delivered a surprisingly blunt speech. “The old order is not coming back,” he declared. “We are in the midst of a rupture, not a transition.” In this new reality, he warned, quoting Thucydides, “the strong can do what they can, and the weak must suffer what they must.”

The ‘revolutionary’ rhetoric did not stop there. Carney called for “strategic autonomy” for middle powers, warning that “if we’re not at the table, we’re on the menu.” He insisted that the West could no longer rely solely on “the strength of our values,” but must pivot to “the value of our strength.”

Yet, before mistaking Carney for a Sankara or a Lumumba, one must recall his administration’s record on the slaughter in Gaza. The irony is inescapable: Carney rails against a world where “might makes right” when it involves American tariffs or threats to Greenland, yet he presides over a policy that facilitates exactly that in the Middle East.

The contrast between Carney’s Davos persona and his actual policy on Gaza is best illustrated by a single moment in Calgary on 8 April 2025. During a campaign rally, Carney was interrupted by a shout: “Mr. Carney, there is a genocide in Palestine!” The Prime Minister responded directly: “I’m aware. That’s why we have an arms embargo.”

For a few hours, it appeared the leader of a G7 nation had finally........

© Middle East Monitor