Carney's Davos speech draws reaction from around the world

Prime Minister Mark Carney's speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos earlier this week is being lauded by some for its bold description of where the world is — and where it needs to go. 

Without naming U.S. President Donald Trump, Carney said "American hegemony" and "great powers" are using economic integration as "weapons."

"The old order is not coming back," he said. "We should not mourn it. Nostalgia is not a strategy. But from the fracture, we can build something better, stronger and more just."

The 16-minute speech not only challenged the behaviour of America under Trump, but suggested a bold path forward where middle powers like Canada and others band together so they can approach those great powers from a place of strength. 

Here's some of the reaction the speech has gotten from political leaders, from Australia to Europe to Mexico. 

Finnish President Alexander Stubb

"I think it was an excellent speech," Stubb said at the end of a panel discussion in Davos on Wednesday where Europe’s security situation was being discussed.

"It was a deep analysis of the change in the world order and the new balance that we’re looking at," he said.

"It was very realistic. It talked about values based realism as a driver for Canadian foreign policy. All in all, I think [it was] one of the best speeches that we’ve heard here in Davos this week so far."

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte 

Rutte, who was on that same panel, said the thrust of the speech tells him that "Canada is back" as a key NATO player and leader on the world stage. 

"I respect him a lot," Rutte said of Carney.

"I think he had a speech which was strong on Canadian values and what Canada can contribute to the world," he added. "At the same time I would say this is very good, and Canada is back when you look at NATO."

California Gov. Gavin Newsom

"I had more leaders from the United States quietly send me, not publicly, the transcript of that speech saying, 'Wow.' It got in Trump's head yesterday, he brought it up," Newsom told an audience in Davos during a moderated discussion Thursday. 

"The clarity came from the prime minister of Canada," the California governor said. 

"I respect what Carney did because he had courage of convictions, he stood up, and I think we need to stand up in America and call this out with clarity."

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick

Lutnick unsurprisingly criticized Canada for "complaining" about its treatment by the Trump administration while enjoying the "second-best" trade deal of any country in the world with the U.S.

"Give me a break, they have the second-best deal in the world and all I gotta do is listen to this guy whine and complain," Lutnick said during a media interview in Davos. 

"If we take it correctly, we should just look at it as political noise coming out of a prime minister, and maybe this is working for his election, right, because I don't think it can be real."

Australia's Treasurer Jim Chalmers

Chalmers, the most senior economic minister in the Australian government, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), that country's public broadcaster, that he was stunned by Carney's speech.

"I thought Mark Carney’s speech was stunning. I thought it was very impactful, very thoughtful, certainly widely shared and discussed in our government and no doubt around the world," Chalmers said. 

"For Australia, no doubt for Canada, the point that Prime Minister Carney was making is that our interests are best served by co-operation and by managing our differences within international law and international institutions."

Former Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull

Turnbull also spoke to ABC, telling its audience that anyone who's been "paying attention to what’s happening in the world" would understand Carney had hit the mark.

"[Australian Prime Minister] Anthony Albanese should give the same speech because basically the message is: We will not be bullied, we will maintain our sovereignty. And as a middle power, we will work with other middle powers to stand up to the bully," Turnbull said.

"If you are integrated with the United States economically or you are dependent on the United States, Trump will use that as a vulnerability and exploit it."

Marko Mihkelson, chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee of Estonia's Parliament

Mihkelson posted Carney's speech on X and encouraged his followers to watch it. 

"This is a genuine manifesto of free people standing up to bullies. Listen, adjust, and execute," Mihkelson wrote. 

Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden 

"Very important and very well put remarks by Canadian PM Mark Carney," Bildt wrote in a post on X.

"It’s time to take down the sign and speak up," he added, referring to a famous parable used by former Czech president Václav Havel in his 1978 essay The Power of the Powerless, to which Carney alluded in his Davos speech.

Alastair Campbell, Tony Blair's former director of communications

Campbell mentioned the speech several times on X, lauding Carney for taking a stand against Trump. 

"Yesterday it was impossible to walk down the street in Davos without people stopping to want to talk about the Orange Man Baby," Campbell wrote in one post. "Today it is [Mark Carney] they want to talk about."

In another post, the man who played a key role in Blair's rise to power wrote: "Speeches still matter. A privilege to be there to hear one of the best — and most important — of recent times from [Mark Carney] yesterday. Others need to follow his lead."

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum

Speaking during her morning news conference in Mexico on Wednesday, Sheinbaum said Carney’s speech was "in tune with the current times." 

"That was a very good speech by Carney, from Prime Minister Carney, I don’t know if you heard it," Sheinbaum said. 

Her remarks were echoed by Juan Ignacio Zavala Gutiérrez of the opposition Movimiento Ciudadano (Citizens' Movement) party, who said Carney’s speech struck a chord with him. 

"I think it was a very powerful, clear and intelligent speech," he said, noting that it revealed how "emerging forces like Canada" are planning to "forge alliances" in order to deal with hegemonic powers like the U.S. and China.