Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, states that the days of Canada’s military “sending 70 cents of every dollar to the United States are over”, receiving a standing ovation from the audience. Speaking at the final day of the 2026 Liberal National Convention in Montreal as the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, Carney affirmed that “this is not the time for politics as usual” and that “united, we will build a Canada strong … that no one can ever take away”.
This marks a significant, historic turn in Canada-U.S. political relations. The two countries have previously ranked each other as one of their respective “favorite nations“, and were close allies.
The speech signals increasing U.S. geopolitical and economic isolation from the world, as a response to the Trump administration’s increasingly hostile diplomatic and economic relations with allies and enemies alike. In 2025, President Trump expressed his desire to annex Canada, calling Prime Minister Mark Carney as ‘future governor’, among other expressions and attempts of expansionism by the Trump administration, such as the proposed acquisition of Greenland. In July 2025, the Trump administration also enforced increased tariffs worldwide, setting Canada at 35%.
Instead, Canada is now strengthening their relations with China in terms of trade and alliances, with bilateral agreement to landmark measures to remove trade barriers and lower tariffs. This shift in Canada’s traditional geopolitical relations is consistent with Prime Minister Mark Carney’s statements at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2026.
Carney emphasized that the “international rules-based order” that was dependent on “American hegemony” was a “fiction” of stability and openness, and a new reality has set in that Canada must adapt to. He stated that this system is in reality, “a system of intensifying great power rivalry, where the most powerful pursue their interests, using economic integration as coercion.”
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