Canada ‘Will Not be Intimidated,’ Trudeau Says After China Expels Canadian Diplomat as Retaliatory Measure

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks with the media in London on May 7, 2023. The Canadian Press/Nathan Denette

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada “will not be intimidated” after Beijing expelled a Canadian diplomat in retaliation for Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly declaring a Chinese diplomat “persona non grata” over alleged interference.

“We will take whatever action is necessary to continue to protect our democracy and show that we’re standing up for our values and our principles,” Trudeau told reporters in Ottawa on May 9.

The prime minister added that cabinet decided to expel Chinese diplomat Zhao Wei after “careful consideration,” saying they understood there would be “retaliation” from China as a result.

“We will not be intimidated and we will continue to do everything necessary to keep Canadians protected from interference,” he said.

Joly made her declaration on May 8 after the Globe and Mail published a report one week earlier saying that Wei worked with a Beijing-linked spy service to target Conservative MP Michael Chong and his family in 2021 because of a House of Commons motion he sponsored, calling China’s treatment of Uyghurs and other Turkic minorities a genocide. CSIS later confirmed the Globe report.

China’s Foreign Affairs Ministry responded less than a day later by expelling Canadian consul in Shanghai, Jennifer Lynn Lalonde, ordering that she leave China by May 13.

Beijing said it “reserves the right” to enact further sanctions against Canada in the near future.

“We urge the Canadian side to step back from the brink and refrain from moving further down the wrong path,” the Chinese embassy said in a statement on May 8. “If the Canadian side acts wantonly and arbitrarily, it will be met with China’s resolute and strong reactions.”

Threats

Trudeau was asked by reporters today if he feared Beijing will act upon its threats of further retaliation because of Wei’s expulsion.

“These are things that we considered,” Trudeau responded. “But we decided that we needed to move forward in a responsible way to send a very clear message that we will not accept foreign interference.”

“Regardless of whatever next choices they make, we will not be intimidated, and more, we will ensure that China continues to see, along with other countries, that are engaging in foreign interference, that we take this extraordinarily seriously.”

Chong told reporters on May 8 that the government’s expulsion of the Chinese diplomat shouldn’t have taken this long.

“It shouldn’t have taken the targeting of a member of Parliament to make this decision. We have known for years that the PRC is using its accredited diplomats here in Canada to target Canadians and their families.”

Shortly before Chong made the comments, the House of Commons passed a non-binding motion calling on the Liberal government to take immediate action against Beijing’s interference in Canada on four fronts, including the expulsion of diplomats known to be involved in Canada’s interference network.

The motion also called on the government to “immediately create a foreign agent registry,” to shut down undercover PRC-run police stations operating in Canada, and establish a national public inquiry into foreign election interference.