U.S. President Donald Trump criticized Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s remarks at the World Economic Forum on Wednesday, responding directly to comments Carney made during a speech earlier in the event.
“Canada gets a lot of freebies from us, by the way,” the president said during a wide ranging and lengthy speech. “They should be grateful but they’re not. I watched your prime minister yesterday. He wasn’t so grateful. But they should be grateful to us, Canada. Canada lives because of the United States. Remember that, Mark, the next time you make your statements.”
Carney delivered a speech on Tuesday at the annual gathering of political and business leaders. In that address, he discussed what he characterized as a weakening of the post–Cold War rules-based international order, and urged countries to adapt to shifting geopolitical realities amid rising competition among major powers. Many observers interpreted elements of the speech as implicit criticisms of U.S. policy, particularly in light of tensions over trade and territorial issues.
The exchange highlights ongoing diplomatic friction between the United States and Canada, which has surfaced in conversations at the forum as well as in broader discussions about trade, security, and global leadership, Newsweek reported
Carney warned that the post–Cold War rules‑based order had become a “useful fiction” propped up for decades by U.S. power, but one he argued can “no longer be relied on” amid rising great‑power rivalry. He said countries like Canada had grown accustomed to the predictability and protection of multilateral institutions, but now face an era in which major powers use “tariffs as leverage” and “economic integration as weapons.”
The Canadian leader compared the current time as a “rupture, not a transition,” urging middle powers to develop greater strategic autonomy in areas such as energy, supply chains and critical minerals. He then referenced Václav Havel’s parable of “living within a lie” to argue that nations must confront the new geopolitical reality directly, warning that compliance in hopes of safety “won’t” work.