Dan Stanton, a former executive manager with the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), says it’s not unusual to have such a high representation of Chinese diplomats if the level of engagement such as trade warrants a massive establishment.
“My concern would be what percentage are involved in foreign interference activity, or even espionage,” Stanton said.
How Consulates Are Set Up
Besides consular services such as visa processing and assistance and protection sections, Chinese embassies and consulates typically have sections responsible for Political Affairs, Overseas Chinese Affairs, Economic and Commercial Affairs, Science and Technology, Education, and Culture. The embassy also has a formal military attaché.In addition to a consul general, each consulate typically has two vice consul generals. Chen says one of the two is a career diplomat from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while the other is from the Ministry of State Security (MSS), China’s intelligence agency.
“They call it counter-espionage, monitoring the staff. But they also work to coordinate other actions for MSS, such as running surveillance on a particular target,” he says.
Targeting the ‘Six Groups’
The Political Affairs section is the one in charge of bilateral relations between China and the host country.Although bilateral relations concern the host country’s capital city, where the central government and embassies are located, Chinese consulates, which are in other cities, usually have this office as well.
“Consulates originally were set up for the issuance of visas, reporting back on lost passports, and things like that. And it does seem a little funny [for consulates to have the] political affairs responsibilities,” Stanton said. “But I guess it’s how they view everything. Maybe every contact with a Canadian entity, they probably see there is a political aspect to it for the PRC [People’s Republic of China].”
According to Chen, the Political Affairs office is also entrusted with one of the highest priorities of the CCP: dealing with the “six groups.” The term refers to the groups and entities that the CCP has targeted for eradication or full control, including Falun Gong adherents, Uyghur Muslims, Tibetans, democracy activists, Taiwan activists, and Hong Kong activists.
Interference Operations
Chen says the Overseas Chinese Affairs section is the one in charge of “non-governmental diplomacy.” This follows in the legacy of “ping-pong diplomacy” that resulted in a turning point in U.S.-PRC relations in the 1970s, and includes activities such as entertainment events to advance CCP propaganda, he says.This section is also part of the CCP’s United Front Work Department, Chen says. “The intention is to interfere in the internal affairs of Canada.”
One of the primary focuses of the United Front is to influence the overseas Chinese population in order to advance the CCP’s interests abroad.
“Chinese consulates and embassies relay instructions to Chinese community groups and the Chinese-language media, and they host visits of high-level CCP delegations coming to meet with local overseas Chinese groups,” Brady said.
Education, Culture, and Trade Secrets
Chen says other sections of Chinese diplomatic missions are gaining more importance for the CCP as well, such as the Education section, as more Chinese students come to Canada.The other focus of the Education section, Chen says, is the CCP’s Confucius Institutes, hosted by some Canadian educational institutions.
‘Interfering in Canadian Politics’
Chen says it should be obvious that many of China’s diplomats aren’t engaged in legitimate diplomatic activities, and that the size of China’s diplomatic mission in Canada should be significantly curtailed.“They don’t need the Overseas Chinese Affairs office, which is working with the United Front organization and propaganda, nourishing Chinese spies. All the diplomats working in this section should be expelled,” he says.
Similarly, Canada should refuse to accept any replacement for the expelled diplomat Zhao Wei, since he was in charge of harassing the diaspora in Canada, Chen says.
The same goes for other diplomats in the Political Affairs office in consulates, he says, which even on the surface don’t seem to have a legitimate case, as political engagements should happen in the host nation’s capital. Even in Ottawa, he says, just a couple of people should be enough in this office to carry out tasks related to bilateral relations, and most of the others should be removed.
“The Political Affairs section is interfering in Canadian politics, such as bribing politicians or threatening Canadian MPs—that’s their job,” Chen said.
He says the same applies to the other sections, such as the Education section, since their sole purpose is to interfere in Canada.
“There’s not that much government business in education. Their main job is students and Confucius Institutes. Besides that, they don’t have anything else to do. They interfere with universities’ academic independence and run spy networks,” Chen says.
He adds that Canada should also expel the vice consul general who is from the MSS, as well as other diplomats who have military background, because China already has a formal military attaché in Ottawa.
‘Purely Reactive’
According to Chen, the CCP’s international diplomacy is an extension of its domestic system, which works to try and cover up the fact that the regime is not a legitimate government since it wasn’t elected by the popular vote.“International recognition is vital for them, so they spend huge money on their dollar diplomacy,” he says, adding as an example the CCP’s major expenditures in developing countries in Africa.
“Their overseas diplomacy focuses on politics to help the CCP stay in power.”
Before that, in 2006, Ottawa expelled a diplomat for collecting information on Falun Gong adherents in Canada and inciting Chinese international students to help him in the efforts, The Epoch Times reported at the time.
Stanton says he is not surprised that Canada hasn’t been expelling any diplomats in recent years, because Canada doesn’t really have a realistic China policy.
“What we are seeing is a purely reactive foreign policy being challenged by leaks to the media,” he said.
“Perhaps they [Beijing] are more brazen and bolder because there haven’t been any concrete consequences to undiplomatic activity.”