Terri Bloore: Mark Carney’s landmark Davos speech already reads differently today

Terri Bloore is the Conservative candidate for Mayor of Newham.

When Mark Carney took to the stage at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2026 in Davos less than two months ago there was deft silence followed by rapturous applaud. European’s and democrats saw his speech as somewhat anti-American. That conclusion says more about the current geopolitical mood than about what he said.

I was in attendance, wearing that odd combination of snow boots and a suit, and felt the atmosphere change, but in my view Carney’s message was not about turning away from the United States. It was about recognising that the world has changed and that countries in Europe and beyond must adapt accordingly.

With President Trump in attendance the American turnout was indeed palpable.  Yes ‘America House’ and its huge eagles dominated the promenade, yes there were robots walking streets and men dressed as polar bears – larger than life and a little more brash than years before. But the atmosphere was not anti-American.

In less than two months, the world has shifted dramatically.  The central theme of Carney’s speech was that a world order built on open trade, relatively stable institutions and strong American leadership is under strain and one we cannot take for granted. Since that speech, a lot has happened, not least the conflict in the Middle East. Looking back, it seems as though Carney was preparing us for this twists and turns that we are facing as soon as we turn on the news.

Economic policy, he argued, is increasingly becoming geopolitical policy. Supply chains, energy markets and trade are now instruments of power. For decades, many Western countries operated under the assumption that rules-based institutions and global economic integration would naturally reinforce stability. That assumption is now far less certain.

Carney’s argument was that countries such as Canada, the UK and many European nations can no longer simply rely on the system working as it once did. They must strengthen their resilience and work more closely with one another to protect shared values and economic stability.

None of this is particularly controversial in private discussions among policymakers. In Davos this year, it was practically the backdrop to every panel conversation. Yet the moment Carney suggested that middle powers needed to assert themselves more clearly, some observers interpreted it as a critique of the United States.

In today’s political climate, almost any conversation about strategic autonomy is quickly framed as a rejection of Washington. But that is not what Carney was arguing. Standing in Davos, the message sounded less like a rebuke and more like a pragmatic assessment of geopolitical reality. The world is becoming more fragmented. Economic competition between major powers is intensifying. Alliances must adjust.

The idea that Europe should have greater strategic confidence is not anti-American. In many ways it strengthens the Western alliance by making partners more capable and resilient. If Carney’s speech had truly been a rejection of American leadership, his subsequent positions would look very different.

Instead, when tensions escalated in the Middle East and the United States moved against Iran, Canada signalled its support for the broader security objectives shared by Western allies. That decision alone undermines the narrative that Carney was advocating a break from the United States. It demonstrated what most policymakers already understand: Western security and economic stability still depend heavily on cooperation between North America and Europe. The alliance may be evolving, but it has not disappeared.

What struck me most in Davos was not the speech itself but the reaction to it. In a world increasingly shaped by geopolitical rivalry, even moderate calls for strategic realism are quickly interpreted through a binary lens.

Pro-America or anti-America. Alignment or independence. Carney’s argument was more nuanced than that. The world is entering a period where the assumptions that once underpinned globalisation are weakening. Institutions are under pressure. Economic relationships are becoming more politicised. Strategic competition between major powers is intensifying. In that environment, middle powers cannot simply assume stability will hold. They must invest in their own economic resilience, cooperate more closely with partners and be prepared to defend the values that underpin open societies.

In many ways, the speech reflected the quiet consensus I saw across Davos this year.

The transatlantic alliance remains fundamental. But the world it operates in is becoming more volatile and more competitive. Recognising that reality is not a rejection of the United States. It is an acknowledgement that maintaining Western values in the twenty-first century will require stronger partnerships, greater resilience and a more honest understanding of power.