Beijing: China on Tuesday expelled a Canadian diplomat in Shanghai after Ottawa asked a Toronto-based Chinese diplomat to leave the country, escalating already strained bilateral ties amid concerns about Chinese influence in Canada. Expelled in the tit.
Canada expelled Chinese diplomat on Monday zhao wei He was accused of trying to target a Canadian lawmaker who criticized China’s treatment of the Uighur Muslim minority following an intelligence report.
Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie said on Monday, “We will not tolerate foreign interference of any kind.”
In response to Canada’s “unreasonable actions”, China asked Jennifer Lynn Lalonde, consul general of the Canadian consulate in Shanghai, to leave China by May 13, according to the Chinese foreign ministry in a statement.
The Foreign Ministry said that China reserves the right to respond further.
Diplomatic tensions run high after Huawei Technologies executive detained meng wanzhou in 2018 and the subsequent arrest of two Canadians by Beijing on espionage charges. All three were to be released in 2021.
Last year, Beijing lifted a three-year ban on imports of canola, Canada’s biggest crop, from trading companies Richardson International and Viterra. Meng’s arrest followed sanctions, but China cited concerns about pests. China is also a major importer of Canadian potash and wheat.
Spy agency Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) wrote a report on Chinese influence in Canada in 2021 that included information about potential threats to a Conservative Member of Parliament Michael Chong and his family.
Details of the CSIS report came to light on 1 May, when Canada’s Globe and Mail newspaper reported that China had written about Chong and his family in a possible effort to “make an example” in China and prevent others from taking over the anti-Chinese government. Asked for information about Post.
“It shouldn’t have taken two years for the government to make this decision,” Chong told reporters after the announcement.
China has said it has never interfered in Canada’s internal affairs and has no interest in doing so. The Toronto Consulate General of China said the report on Chong “has no factual basis and is completely baseless.”
The Globe, citing an unnamed national security source, said Zhao was involved in gathering information about Chong, who sponsored a successful resolution in 2021 outlawing China’s treatment of its Uyghur Muslim minority genocide.
Chong said he was “deeply disappointed” to learn of a possible threat to his family in Hong Kong from a newspaper, and criticized TrudeauGovernment for inaction. He has repeatedly called for Zhao’s ouster since the Globe report.
Trudeau said he learned about the intelligence report from the newspaper, and on Wednesday blamed the spy agency for not providing it to him at the time.
The agency has now been directed to immediately inform the members of Parliament and their families about the threats.
Canadian media outlets have published several reports, citing unnamed intelligence sources, alleging plans by the Chinese government to interfere in Canada’s last two elections. Beijing has denied those allegations.
Trudeau had previously said that China tried to interfere in the 2019 and 2021 votes, but these efforts did not change the result. He has appointed an independent special investigator to investigate the allegations.
Canada expelled Chinese diplomat on Monday zhao wei He was accused of trying to target a Canadian lawmaker who criticized China’s treatment of the Uighur Muslim minority following an intelligence report.
Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie said on Monday, “We will not tolerate foreign interference of any kind.”
In response to Canada’s “unreasonable actions”, China asked Jennifer Lynn Lalonde, consul general of the Canadian consulate in Shanghai, to leave China by May 13, according to the Chinese foreign ministry in a statement.
The Foreign Ministry said that China reserves the right to respond further.
Diplomatic tensions run high after Huawei Technologies executive detained meng wanzhou in 2018 and the subsequent arrest of two Canadians by Beijing on espionage charges. All three were to be released in 2021.
Last year, Beijing lifted a three-year ban on imports of canola, Canada’s biggest crop, from trading companies Richardson International and Viterra. Meng’s arrest followed sanctions, but China cited concerns about pests. China is also a major importer of Canadian potash and wheat.
Spy agency Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) wrote a report on Chinese influence in Canada in 2021 that included information about potential threats to a Conservative Member of Parliament Michael Chong and his family.
Details of the CSIS report came to light on 1 May, when Canada’s Globe and Mail newspaper reported that China had written about Chong and his family in a possible effort to “make an example” in China and prevent others from taking over the anti-Chinese government. Asked for information about Post.
“It shouldn’t have taken two years for the government to make this decision,” Chong told reporters after the announcement.
China has said it has never interfered in Canada’s internal affairs and has no interest in doing so. The Toronto Consulate General of China said the report on Chong “has no factual basis and is completely baseless.”
The Globe, citing an unnamed national security source, said Zhao was involved in gathering information about Chong, who sponsored a successful resolution in 2021 outlawing China’s treatment of its Uyghur Muslim minority genocide.
Chong said he was “deeply disappointed” to learn of a possible threat to his family in Hong Kong from a newspaper, and criticized TrudeauGovernment for inaction. He has repeatedly called for Zhao’s ouster since the Globe report.
Trudeau said he learned about the intelligence report from the newspaper, and on Wednesday blamed the spy agency for not providing it to him at the time.
The agency has now been directed to immediately inform the members of Parliament and their families about the threats.
Canadian media outlets have published several reports, citing unnamed intelligence sources, alleging plans by the Chinese government to interfere in Canada’s last two elections. Beijing has denied those allegations.
Trudeau had previously said that China tried to interfere in the 2019 and 2021 votes, but these efforts did not change the result. He has appointed an independent special investigator to investigate the allegations.