Canada PM Mark Carney backs Europe to reshape world order amid geopolitical 'rupture'

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, the only non-European leader to be invited to the European Political Community summit in Armenia's capital, Yerevan, asserted Monday that the world is no longer willing to accept a "transactional, insular, and brutal" approach to geopolitics. In his roughly five-minute introductory speech at the summit, the Canadian PM stressed that his country's strong relationship with European nations would serve as the foundation for rebuilding the international order, which he predicted would be "rebuilt out of Europe." 

"Our shared values are born of that common history: freedom, rule of law, democracy, pluralism," Carney said before lauding Canada's increasing cooperation and shared history with European nations, including the U.K. and Germany. "And that's necessary because the world is undergoing a rupture across several dimensions: in technology, in energy, in commerce, and geopolitics. Integration is being used as a weapon by some, and the rules are not constraining the hegemons," Carney added. 

The Canadian PM ended his speech by proclaiming a shift in global politics. "I'll close with this: it's my strong personal view that as the international order will be rebuilt... but it will be rebuilt out of Europe," he said. Several media publications and liberal commentators, including the New York Times, interpreted Carney's remarks as a direct criticism of President Donald Trump, who recently confirmed the withdrawal of 5,000 American troops from Germany.

However, when asked a direct question on what he thought of the Trump administration's decision, Carney said that "it's our responsibility to fulfill our NATO commitments." "That's why we've made the effort—and succeeded over the course of the last year—to hit that 2% target. There's more to be done; we're going to continue to move forward with that. It's one of the reasons why I'm here, because one of the most efficient and effective ways to meet our NATO obligations is to cooperate with our European partners, other partners—obviously the Americans as well—but our European partners."

The summit comes at a time of serious regional instability in the Middle East, causing energy concerns and straining European ties with the U.S. As leaders met in Armenia, there were reports that Iranian forces fired warning shots at U.S. Navy destroyers in the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. later announced that it had struck seven Iranian "small boats." President Trump, meanwhile, has also warned Tehran that its forces will be “blown off the face of the earth” if they attempt to target US vessels guiding ships through the Strait of Hormuz.