Canada has expelled a Chinese diplomat after an intelligence report accused him of trying to intimidate a Canadian lawmaker critical of China’s treatment of its Uyghur Muslim minority. “Canada has decided to declare persona non grata Mr Zhao Wei,” the Canadian foreign minister, Mélanie Joly, said in a statement on Monday. “The decision has been taken after careful consideration of all factors at play.” The rare decision to remove an accredited diplomat comes only days after Joly’s office summoned the Chinese ambassador, Cong Peiwu, to express frustration over attempts to…
Tag: Canada
Did China Help Vancouver’s Mayor Win Election?
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Every day when he arrives at his office in City Hall, Mayor Ken Sim stares at a prominent black-and-white photograph of Chinese railway workers toiling on the tracks in British Columbia in 1884. Mr. Sim, the son of Hong Kong immigrants, said the workers’ weathered faces are a daily reminder of the symbolic importance of his election as Vancouver’s first Chinese Canadian mayor, and of just how far Chinese Canadians have come. Six months ago, his historic landslide victory was widely lauded, viewed as the triumph…
Canada summons Chinese ambassador after MP and his family harassed
Canada has summoned China’s ambassador as Justin Trudeau’s government considers expelling a Chinese diplomat accused of involvement in a harassment campaign against a MP lawmaker and his family in retaliation for the lawmaker’s criticisms of Beijing. The foreign affairs minister, Mélanie Joly, told a parliamentary committee on Thursday that her office had summoned Chinese ambassador Cong Peiwu to express frustration over attempts to meddle in Canada’s domestic politics. “We will not tolerate any form of foreign interference,” she said, adding that “all options are on the table”. Joly, who is…
Canadian lawmaker says China targeted his family for harassment
A Canadian lawmaker has accused government officials of turning a blind eye to Chinese harassment of his family as pressure mounts on Justin Trudeau to launch a public inquiry into Beijing’s attempts to meddle in the country’s domestic politics. The Globe and Mail reported that China’s intelligence agency had sought information about Michael Chong’s family in Hong Kong “for further potential sanctions” over the Conservative MP’s criticism of Beijing’s human rights abuses. The paper also reported that Zhao Wei, a Chinese diplomat in Toronto, was part of the harassment campaign.…
Explainer: China’s covert overseas ‘police stations’
The FBI this week arrested two men accused of running a covert overseas police operation in New York on behalf of Chinese authorities. The charges followed a raid on a Fujianese community centre in Chinatown in October 2022. Lu Jianwang and Chen Jinping, both US citizens, are accused of using the premises to run an “unofficial police station”. Police in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands and Canada have opened investigations into similar allegations in their countries. On Wednesday, Chris Philp, a UK home office minister, said the outposts were “of…
Canadian lawmaker resigns following claims he secretly advised Chinese diplomat
A Canadian lawmaker has resigned from the governing Liberal party following allegations that he secretly met with a Chinese diplomat and advised Beijing not to release two Canadian captives. Han Dong announced in the House of Commons late on Wednesday that he would sit as an independent. Global News reported that he met with Han Tao, China’s consul-general in Toronto in February 2021 and suggested officials in Beijing delay freeing Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, two Canadians being held by China at the time. He is also alleged to have…
Claims of Chinese Election Meddling Put Trudeau on Defensive
OTTAWA — The leaked intelligence reports have set off a political firestorm. They describe plans by the government of China and its diplomats in Canada to ensure that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party took power in the last two elections, raising troubling questions about the integrity of Canada’s democracy. But as two prominent Canadian news organizations have published a series of leaks over the past month, Mr. Trudeau has refused calls to launch a public inquiry into the matter, angering political opponents and leading to accusations that he is…
Trudeau faces fury of Canadian MPs over alleged Chinese election meddling
Justin Trudeau is under mounting pressure to explain how seriously his government has responded to the threat of Chinese interference in Canadian elections in the wake of damning intelligence leaks. Allegations that the prime minister’s government has failed to act on meddling efforts featured prominently in a raucous session of parliament on Wednesday, as concern over Beijing’s efforts to undermine Canadian elections continues to dominate the country’s politics. Earlier this week, Global News reported that, according to an intelligence report, “a large clandestine transfer of funds” was directed from China’s…
Canada roiled by leaked intelligence reports of Chinese election ‘meddling’
A flurry of leaked intelligence reports has reignited allegations that China interfered in Canada’s recent federal elections, kicking off a fierce debate over possible responses to Beijing’s meddling. But the leaks also run the risk of harming Canada’s reputation among its allies, experts warn, as the country’s spy agency struggles to respond to mounting public concern. Opposition leaders have pushed the prime minister, Justin Trudeau, for a public inquiry into how China attempted to sway the result of two federal elections in its favour. On Monday evening, Trudeau announced he…
Justin Trudeau to appoint special rapporteur to probe foreign interference in elections
Canada’s prime minister, Justin Trudeau, has said he will appoint a special rapporteur to probe allegations of Chinese interference in recent elections amid mounting political pressure to push back against Beijing and to maintain public confidence in democratic institutions. “We believe deeply in the values of freedom, openness, and dialogue. These values are not universally shared by every government around the world,” Trudeau said at a press conference on Monday evening. “Indeed, I don’t know if in our lifetime, we’ve seen democracy in a more precarious place. Many state actors…