Canada urges middle powers to unite against superpowers
Updated ,first published
Middle powers such as Canada and Australia will be overrun by increasingly assertive global superpowers unless they come together on defence, trade and technology, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told the Australian parliament in a rare speech.
In his speech to the joint session of parliament, Carney announced that Australia will join the critical minerals alliance led by the G7, consisting of the most developed economies of the democratic world, in order to ensure that China cannot dominate this important sector.
Carney used his parliamentary speech to expand on the themes of his exit speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he declared an end to the “fantasy” of a post-World War II rules-based order.
“In a post-disengagement world, nations that are trusted and able to work together will get results faster, be more effective in their responses, be more proactive in shaping outcomes, and will ultimately be more secure and prosperous,” Carney said on Thursday.
“Middle powers like Australia and Canada hold that rare unifying power because others know we mean what we say and will match our values with our actions… In a world of great power competition, middle powers have a choice: compete for good or unite for power.”
Canada has witnessed an explosion of nationalism since US President Donald Trump returned to office; He declared Canada the “51st state” of America, imposed tariffs on Canadian goods, and began to think about the country coming under US control.
As major powers such as China, the United States and Russia become increasingly assertive, Carney said they have concluded that smaller nations need to pursue “greater strategic autonomy.”
“When the rules no longer protect you, you have to protect yourself,” he said.
“A country that cannot feed itself, fuel itself, and defend itself has few options.
“In contrast, Canada’s strategic imperative is to build dominant capabilities at home and abroad in these critical sectors, building coalitions with trusted, reliable partners like Australia to ensure that integration never again becomes the source of our subordination.”
Carney becomes the fifth world leader to address the Australian parliament in the past decade, following Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (via videolink), Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape and Philippine President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.
Carney labeled his framework for engaging with the world as “variable geometry – creating different coalitions based on shared values and interests for different issues.”
“Every agreement signed, every coalition deepened, every commitment made is, in practice, variable geometry,” he said.
Carney singled out critical minerals as a key area where Australia and Canada should partner to ensure the two democracies are not vulnerable to economic pressure.
“In the old world, and even today to some extent, there was a tendency to see ourselves as competitors. In this new world, we must be strategic collaborators,” Carney said.
“Increasing investments, accelerating technical cooperation, increasing supply chain flexibility, expanding our domestic processing capabilities, and at the same time increasing our strategic autonomy.
“That’s why earlier today we signed a number of new agreements on critical minerals, including Australia joining the G7 minerals alliance, the largest grouping of reliable democratic mineral reserves in the world.”
Alongside critical minerals, defence, artificial intelligence, trade and access to capital are other key areas where Australia and Canada need to work more closely together, Carney said.
“Instead of lamenting the collapse of the old order, let’s redouble our efforts to build the new order,” he said.
Albanese welcomed Carney to the House of Representatives and said the visit represented the nations’ aim to “do more together, at a deeper level”.
“Australia and Canada are middle powers in a changing world,” he said.
“We can’t undo this, but we can support ourselves, our citizens and each other.”
Albanese said the fact that Australia and Canada do not share the same border or territory makes the partnership “more meaningful, not less” because it is “a positive choice, not an obligation”.
Carney attended an event in Sydney on Wednesday where a memorandum of understanding was signed to pave the way for greater collaboration between the Australian superannuation industry and Canadian superannuation funds.
Canadian Defense Minister David McGuinty told this outlet he hopes the two countries will work out a visiting forces agreement that would allow their troops to easily operate from each other’s military installations while conducting more joint exercises.
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