Canada's Carney's "anti-bullying" speech "stirred up a hornet's nest," Trump's team "furiously angry"

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's tough speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos has sparked a diplomatic storm between the U.S. and Canada. According to a previous report by Xinhua News Agency, Prime Minister Carney stated at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on January 20, that recently, some major powers have used tariffs as leverage for pressure and financial infrastructure as a tool for coercion. As mentioned in a previous article by Wall Street Insight, this newly appointed Prime Minister called for medium-sized countries to unite against economic coercion from major powers and warned, "If we are not at the negotiating table, we will become someone else's meal." This statement has been widely interpreted as a direct rebuttal to the Trump administration's pressure. On January 23, media reports indicated that U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross criticized Carney's speech as "arrogant and haughty," while Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin demanded that Carney should "say thank you" instead of delivering a "values performance speech." According to CCTV News, Trump specifically criticized Carney in Davos for being "not grateful enough to the U.S." and claimed that "Canada survives on the U.S." Trump also rescinded Canada's invitation to join his "Peace Council" on social media. CCTV News reported that after returning to Canada, Carney quickly retaliated, emphasizing in a domestic speech that "Canada does not rely on the U.S. for survival; Canada thrives because we are Canadians." Analysts believe that this diplomatic spat highlights the most serious rift in U.S.-Canada relations in decades and signifies that Canada is reassessing its strategic dependence on the U.S. Davos Speech Directly Points to "Hegemonic Coercion" According to reports, Carney's speech at Davos was firm, stating that "the rules-based international order established after World War II is dying," and the world has entered an era of great power zero-sum games. Although he did not directly name the United States, he clearly mentioned that "hegemonic countries" are weaponizing tariffs, financial infrastructure, and supply chains, posing a threat to middle powers. Carney stated: "For decades, countries like Canada have prospered under the so-called rules-based international order, and we know part of this story is false; hegemonic countries exempt themselves when convenient, and trade rules are enforced asymmetrically, but this deal no longer works." He called on middle powers to abandon the illusion that "compliance can buy security" and instead take collective action. "Middle powers must act in unison, because if we are not at the negotiating table, we will become someone else's meal," Carney warned, "Negotiating only with hegemonic countries is negotiating from a position of weakness. This is not sovereignty; this is performing sovereignty while accepting a subordinate status." In response to Trump's sovereignty claims over Greenland and related tariff threats, Carney expressed a strong stance: "On Arctic sovereignty issues, we firmly stand with Greenland and Denmark. Canada strongly opposes tariffs imposed due to the Greenland issue." Trump's Team Strikes Back Collectively Reports indicate that Trump directly named Carney in his speech at Davos, stating that he is not grateful enough to the United States. "Canada survives because of the U.S.," Trump said, "Remember that, Mark, the next time you make a statement." On Thursday, Trump announced on the Truth Social platform the withdrawal of Canada's invitation to join his "Peace Committee," although Carney had previously indicated he was considering it but had not yet accepted. Commerce Secretary Lutnick's criticism was sharper, accusing Carney's speech of being "arrogant thinking" and likening it to "complaining and whining." Lutnick also hinted that Canada's trade agreement with China could become an obstacle to renegotiating the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) later this year. Finance Minister Bessenet stated in an interview at Davos: "I think Prime Minister Carney should say 'thank you' to the U.S. instead of giving this values-performance speech." After returning to Canada, Carney countered in a domestic speech that Canadians must double their efforts to rebuild the economy, citing Canada's founding history to emphasize "choosing partnership over domination, choosing cooperation over division." "Canada does not survive because of the U.S.; Canada thrives because we are Canadians." Strategic Shift to "Values-Based Realism" Reports indicate that analysts point out that Carney announced Canada is fundamentally shifting its strategic posture to adopt "values-based realism." This means Canada will no longer passively wait but will actively build hard power and a diversified network of relationships. On the defense front, Carney committed to doubling defense spending by the end of this decade, investing in submarines, beyond-visual-range radar, and joining the EU's defense procurement arrangements In terms of trade, according to CCTV News, during Carney's official visit to China from January 14 to 17, both parties signed the "China-Canada Economic and Trade Cooperation Roadmap," establishing a preliminary joint arrangement for addressing bilateral economic and trade issues. This agreement reduces tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles and Canadian agricultural products. This diplomatic incident occurs at a critical moment as the U.S. and Canada are about to renegotiate the USMCA. The Trump administration plans to formally initiate negotiations this summer, while approximately 80% of Canada's exports to the U.S. rely on the duty-free provisions of the USMCA. Fen Hampson, a professor of international affairs at Carleton University in Ottawa, stated that Carney's trade easing measures and his speech at Davos indicate that this Canadian leader believes the decades-long economic and security agreements with the U.S. have come to an end. Hampson believes that Carney may be "calculatingly betting that the USMCA cannot be salvaged under acceptable conditions, so the best option is to diversify trade, seek investors, and lead a rules-based partnership alliance."