Canada, China in tit-for-tat for expulsions

In a retaliatory move, China says it is expelling Canada’s consul in Shanghai.

Chinese agents targeted the Hong Kong-based family of Michael Chong.

China on Tuesday said it was expelling Canada’s consul in Shanghai in a tit-for-tat move after Ottawa said it was sending home a Chinese diplomat accused of trying to intimidate a Canadian MP critical of Beijing.

Beijing’s foreign ministry labelled Jennifer Lynn Lalonde “persona non grata”, adding “China reserves the right to further react”. Ms Lalonde was told to leave China by May 13.

On Monday, Zhao Wei – who has been based in China’s consulate in Toronto since 2018 – was declared “persona non grata” and given five days to leave Canada, a remarkable public humiliation of a Chinese government official.

“I have been clear: we will not tolerate any form of foreign interference in our internal affairs. Diplomats in Canada have been warned that if they engage in this type of behaviour, they will be sent home,” Foreign Minister Melanie Joly tweeted.

“This decision has been taken after careful consideration of all factors. We remain firm in our resolve that defending our democracy is of the utmost ­importance.”

The expulsion was triggered by an explosive report in Canada’s Globe and Mail that said Mr Zhao was a “suspected intelligence actor”, who had targeted the Hong Kong-based family of Michael Chong, Canada’s opposition foreign affairs spokesman. The story cited a report by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, which said the campaign was designed to “make an example” of Mr Chong in an attempt to deter people from taking “anti-China” positions.

Mr Chong had sponsored a resolution in 2021 declaring Beijing’s persecution of its Uighur Muslim population “genocide”.

China’s diplomats claimed their country was the victim of a conspiracy and warned “strong reactions” would follow. “The so-called ‘China interference’ is totally groundless, which is the out-and-out smear of China and the political manipulation driven by ideological bias,” said a spokesman at the embassy in ­Ottawa.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took office in 2015 declaring that improving relations with Beijing would be one of his top foreign policy priorities. Instead, he has overseen the deterioration of the relationship to its worst state since his father, Pierre, as prime minister in 1970, switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing.

The scandal over the alleged harassment of a Canadian politician comes after foreign interference scandals, the flight of a suspected Chinese spy balloon over Canada earlier this year and President Xi Jinping’s public dressing down of Mr Trudeau at last November’s G20 summit in Bali.

The rolling scandals and Beijing’s counterpunching has undermined efforts to repair the relationship after the release of Michael Spavor and Michael Kov­rig, two Canadians who were taken hostage by China after the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver.

They were released in September 2021 after 1019 days in prison after the US agreed to close a legal case against Ms Meng.

The decision to expel Mr Zhao comes two weeks before the G7 summit in Hiroshima at which Mr Trudeau will join other leaders, who are expected to co-ordinate their approaches to China.

Anthony Albanese will attend the meeting.

Speaking to The Australian after a dramatic day in Canada’s parliament following the announcement of the expulsion, MP John McKay said Beijing’s actions had led to a dramatic “hardening” of the attitude of the Canadian public towards the Chinese ­government.

“They kidnap our citizens. They run intimidation operations out of so-called police stations … They run balloons over the nation. They put buoys in the Arctic Ocean for sonic information. And to top it all off, they insult the Prime Minister at major international forums,” said Mr McKay, an MP in Mr Trudeau’s Liberal party.

“Other than that, they’re fine folks to deal with.”

Chinese diplomats have found themselves at the centre of scandals as they follow Mr Xi’s instructions to show “fighting spirit”.

In December, China’s consul-general in Manchester and five diplomatic colleagues were hurried out of Britain after they were caught on camera beating up a pro-Hong Kong democracy demonstrator who had insulted Mr Xi.

In 2020, a Chinese diplomat concussed a Taiwanese diplomat at a reception in Fiji. China’s foreign ministry said their colleague had been provoked by the sight of a Taiwanese flag on a cake.