In a rare public outburst, Chinese President Xi Jinping chastised Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Wednesday over suspected leaks of their closed-door discussion at the G20 conference.
Xi and Trudeau may be seen standing close to each other and chatting via a translator at the summit of the Indonesian island of Bali in video footage released by Canadian media. That’s not right and we didn’t do it that way “Xi smiled and stated.
We may speak effectively with mutual respect if we are sincere; otherwise, the conclusion would be difficult to predict.”
His annoyance was most likely in response to media reports that Trudeau raised “serious concerns” about alleged espionage and Chinese “interference” in Canadian elections during his meeting with Xi on Tuesday, his first with the Chinese leader in more than three years.
In the video, a Xi translator tells Trudeau that “everything we discussed was leaked to the paper(s), that’s not proper.”
The video captures an unusually personal moment for Xi, whose image is meticulously controlled by the Chinese official media.
“In Canada, we believe in free, open, and frank dialogue, and that is what we will continue to have,” Trudeau says in response to Xi’s initial criticism.
“We will keep on trying to collaborate constructively, but there will be points where we differ.”
Xi, seeming somewhat annoyed, cuts him off and adds, “Create the circumstances, create the conditions, OK?” before smiling, shaking Trudeau’s hand, and walking away.
The Chinese foreign ministry and official media have not released any information on the talks between Xi and Trudeau. According to a government source, the two had a 10-minute informal discussion on the margins of the G20 conference on Tuesday. According to the Chinese foreign ministry website, Xi has conducted nine official bilateral discussions with other heads of state while at the summit.
Canada never issued an official summary of the discussion, but Trudeau confirmed the conversation and the arguments he made to Xi in a news conference following the G20.
“Canada trusts its citizens with knowledge about the discussions that we conduct as a government in their behalf,” Trudeau said, according to a press conference transcript.
Trudeau added that not all conversations with leaders would be easy, but that “systems” in the two countries differ and that in China “there is not always the same openness that a democratic leader can and must have with his citizens.”
The brief but telling discussion between Xi and Trudeau emphasised tensions between China and Canada, which have been high since the detention of Huawei Technologies executive Meng Wanzhou in 2018 and Beijing’s subsequent arrest of two Canadians on spying allegations. All three were eventually released.
Despite the release, hostilities have lately flared back up.
An employee of Hydro-Quebec, Canada’s largest electricity producer, has been charged with espionage for allegedly attempting to steal trade secrets for the benefit of China, Canadian police said on Monday.
The arrest was announced while Trudeau and Xi were attending the G20 summit.
Canada ordered three Chinese companies to divest their investments in Canadian critical minerals earlier this month, citing national security concerns.
Xi Jinping confronts Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau over’ media leaks’ during the G20 Summit
