By: James Wen
Edited By: Kelly-Dee Anderson
On January 20th, 2026, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Prime Minister Mark Carney delivered a special address to a crowd of powerful political and economic figures, where he stressed the end of the rules-based international order. Provocative for its blunt portrayal of current events, Carney highlighted that “we knew that international law applied with varying rigour depending on the identity of the accused or the victim.” His statement reflects current times with great accuracy and highlights the diminishing role of public condemnation and international law in maintaining the rules-based order of the world. Carney emphasizes that when great powers break international law, no amount of public or international condemnation can stop them from imposing their will on weaker nations. Overall, this phenomenon has proved true in the two major wars of the decade—the Russo-Ukrainian War and the Gaza War—as well as in President Donald Trump’s increasing pursuit of hegemony in the Western Hemisphere.
The failure of public condemnation and international law is highlighted firstly in the Russian invasion of Ukraine beginning in 2022, where the invasion attracted widespread criticism from political leaders and the public. In the early days of the invasion, the UN Security Council met and created a resolution which described Russian attempts to annex four regions of Ukraine as unlawful, a threat to international peace and security, and called for the conduct to be immediately reversed. Russia, holding veto power, vetoed the resolution, essentially negating the power of the public and international response and protecting itself from internationally-backed consequences. Instead of a coordinated international defensive response, Russia faced widespread sanctions. However, for a powerful country with a massive integrated export market, other countries continued to maintain billions of dollars of trade with Russia. The lack of upfront and immediate consequences meant Russia forced no real repercussions and had no real threat challenging its invasion. Alongside this, Russia has vetoed resolutions on Ukraine three additional times, further proving the failure of the public and international systems in coordinating a strong response to the invasion. Public reaction and the media also heavily condemned the invasion; however, as is often the case with public scrutiny without organization, this response lacked upfront conduits to end the war. The ICC also filed for the arrest of Putin and other senior officials, but ultimately lacked the means to do so, making it a non-existent threat.
The same phenomenon is seen in the Gaza War, with global condemnation concentrated on Israel’s actions in what is widely considered a genocide in Gaza. Yet, this public condemnation has had little influence in solving any problems. The United States, a key Israeli ally, has used its veto power in the Security Council six times to block unfavourable resolutions against its ally, creating an environment for Israel to expand settlements in Gaza and preventing key humanitarian aid within the area (Oxfam International, 2024). However, due to the backing of the United States, many allied nations are prudent in their condemnation of Israeli action in Gaza, for fear of deteriorating relationships and economic partnerships, especially with Trump’s threats of tariffs for any country who opposes his will, ally or enemy. Thus, the weak are once again bullied by the strong, and forced to comply with a will not of their own. As with Russia, the ICC has filed an arrest warrant for Prime Minister Netanyahu and other senior Israeli members, yet this remains as no more than an empty threat without backing. The public outcry regarding the humanitarian crisis and Israeli action, similar to reactions to the Russian invasion, remains resounding and strong, yet once again proves unable to induce true action to alleviate the crisis, with governments unyielding and activists like Greta Thunberg barred entry. Russia and Israel both shed light on a key principle: countries are exempt from international rules so long as they are powerful. It is as Carney says: “international law applie[s] with varying rigour depending on the identity of the accused or the victim.”
This same concept can be applied to Trump’s actions within the past month, where he seeks increasing hegemony within the Western Hemisphere via the aptly named “Donroe Doctrine.” The failure of the international system can be witnessed on full display in Venezuela, as the removal of President Nicolás Maduro—a blatant violation of international law which is considered an unlawful military intervention—prompted little to no international response, both within and outside Venezuela. Within Venezuela, leaders were forced to yield to threats of further military intervention by the US after the capture of Maduro and essentially choose between destruction and cooperation, of which the latter was chosen. Internationally, other than a mix of criticism and support in the press releases of various countries, no global action was taken by public international bodies, as first no one was willing to face economic threats (via tariffs) introduced when countries oppose Trump’s will, and second as there was simply not much countries could do—Maduro was already gone. This further proves the diminishing role of public condemnation and international law in determining the actions of big powers with leverage in waging non-military, economic wars.
However, with the current Greenland crisis, we are seeing how the unity of the middle powers can combat coercion from great ones. Together, as a united entity, Europe has responded strongly to Trump’s increasingly real threats to annex Greenland by threatening to use the “economic bazooka” and spark a trade conflict with the United States as a way to counter coercion and maintain Greenland’s right to self-determination. All in all, Europe’s strong response offers hope that with strong and coordinated action by middle powers, the bullying presence of great powers can thereby be countered.
As it stands, the world is currently facing a critical test in how diplomacy is handled. In a time when globalism no longer applies to the United States and other great powers, they are free to use their influence and power to gain whatever they desire and subjugate those that stand in their way. However, we are seeing increasing cooperation between the middle powers, who must adapt in these trying times, as like Carney said, “if we’re not at the table, we’re on the menu.” Regardless of how the situation is interpreted, one statement assuredly holds true: We are living in turbulent times.
References
Image Citation:World Economic Forum, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0. “World Economic Forum Annual Meeting”. Flickr. https://www.flickr.com/photos/worldeconomicforum/52634201577. Accessed February 4 2026.
24, FRANCE. (2026, January 19). What Is the EU Anti-Coercion ‘Bazooka’ It Could Use against the US over Greenland? FRANCE 24. www.france24.com/en/europe/20260119-what-is-eu-anti-coercion-instrument-could-use-against-us-over-trump-greenland-tariffs.
Harb, Ali. (2026, January 8. Abduction of Venezuela’s Maduro Illegal despite US Charges, Experts Say. Al Jazeera. www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/1/8/abduction-of-venezuelas-maduro-illegal-despite-us-charges-experts-say.
Keenan, Claire. (2026, January 4). World Leaders React to US Capture of Venezuelan Leader Nicolás Maduro. BBC. www.bbc.com/news/articles/czx1rpxzyx9o.
“Live Updates: Maduro, Wife Brought to New York after Being Captured in Venezuela | CNN.” CNN, 3 Jan. 2026, www.cnn.com/world/live-news/venezuela-explosions-caracas-intl-hnk-01-03-26.
Oxfam International. “UN Security Council Casts Nearly All Vetoes Last Decade on Syria, Palestine and Ukraine, Robbing Opportunities for Peace | Oxfam International.” Oxfam International, 19 Sept. 2024, www.oxfam.org/en/press-releases/un-security-council-casts-nearly-all-vetoes-last-decade-syria-palestine-and-ukraine.
Reuters Staff. “US and Europe Do Billions in Trade with Russia despite Sanctions.” Reuters, 15 Sept. 2025, www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/us-and-europe-do-billions-trade-with-russia-despite-sanctions-2025-09-15/.
United Nations. “Russia Vetoes Security Council Resolution Condemning Attempted Annexation of Ukraine Regions.” UN News, United Nations, 30 Sept. 2022, news.un.org/en/story/2022/09/1129102.
World Economic Forum. “Davos 2026: Special Address by Mark Carney, PM of Canada.” World Economic Forum, 20 Jan. 2026, www.weforum.org/stories/2026/01/davos-2026-special-address-by-mark-carney-prime-minister-of-canada/.