Foreign Minister Briefed on ‘Very Negative’ Media Coverage of Government’s Handling of Foreign Interference

A guard tries to block photos being taken as he and a policeman patrol outside the Canadian Embassy in Beijing on Jan. 14, 2019. Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images

A briefing note to Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said media reports about Beijing’s interference in Canadian federal elections have taken a very negative tone regarding Ottawa’s approach to the issue, with many urging the government to take concrete action.

“The tone was very negative,” said the briefing note titled “Media Analysis - Allegations of Chinese Interference,” first reported on by Blacklock’s Reporter.

“All the articles urged the government to be proactive and take China’s alleged interference in the 2019 elections seriously,” it said.

“Overall, article angles were divided between criticizing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau versus investigating how this interference infiltrated the Canadian political system, and what concrete solutions could be.”

The briefing note, dated Dec. 13, 2022, came about a month after a Global News report, citing Canadian intelligence officials, said Beijing provided illegal funding to a network of 11 candidates in the 2019 federal election as part of its vast campaign of foreign interference targeting Canada.

A series of reports published this year by the Globe and Mail also revealed that Beijing views Canada as a “high-priority target” for foreign interference, and had orchestrated a scheme to interfere in the 2021 election.

‘Frustration’

The briefing note said news articles and commentaries have “expressed frustration” with the lack of details released to the public about the alleged election interference. There was also “confusion about the timeline of events regarding when the Prime Minister received what information and how it was presented,” the briefing said.

According to the intelligence sources cited in the Global News report, Trudeau and several cabinet members were briefed by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service in relation to the 11 candidates in January 2022. Trudeau denied that he had been briefed on the issue, but the Prime Minister’s Office said he had raised the issue of election interference with Chinese leader Xi Jinping while they attended the G-20 Summit in Indonesia last November.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attends the G-20 Leadership Summit in Bali, Indonesia, and briefly met with Xi Jinping, the leader of the Chinese Communist Party, on Nov. 15, 2022. According to media reports, Trudeau raised pressing concerns about the interference activities of the Chinese Communist Party in Canada. Adam Scotti/Prime Minister's Office Canada/AFP

“Commentaries increasingly called on Trudeau to be honest with Canadians and release information about which candidates were targeted by Chinese interference,” the briefing note said. “Others expressed confusion and doubt about the Prime Minister’s assertion that he had not been briefed about candidates receiving money from China and wondered, in that case, what it was that he had discussed with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20.”

Facing mounting calls for a public inquiry to investigate foreign interference, Trudeau appointed former governor general David Johnston as special rapporteur to look into whether the government should do so. In his first report, published in May, Johnston argued against a public inquiry—a decision that drew fierce criticism from critics and opposition parties. Johnston stepped down as special rapporteur this month, and the government has since said it’s more open to holding a public inquiry.