Canada Rejects Chinese Interference in Its Affairs: Foreign Minister

Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie told her Chinese counterpart, Chen Gang, that Ottawa will never tolerate any foreign interference in its internal affairs, in a recent meeting during the G20 meeting in India on Friday.

The statement said Jolie was “direct, firm and unequivocal” in her first, yet somewhat indignant, meeting with Chen as China’s foreign minister.

Recent Canadian media reports, citing anonymous intelligence sources, have alleged attempts by China to interfere in the recent Canadian elections. Beijing denies the allegations.

“Canada will never tolerate any form of foreign interference in our democracy and domestic affairs by China,” the statement said.

“We will never accept any violation of our territorial integrity and sovereignty,” Jolie said. “We will never accept any breach by Chinese diplomats of the Vienna Convention on Canadian soil.”

Earlier on Friday, Chen rejected allegations that Chinese embassies and consulates in Canada were trying to interfere in the Canadian elections, saying the alleged interference was “totally false and illogical”.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau acknowledged the alleged attempts at interference by China but insisted that the results of the vote had not changed. He is under pressure to launch a public inquiry into the allegations after a parliamentary committee on Thursday endorsed a motion for an investigation.