The Chinese president has slammed Justin Trudeau for leaking details of a meeting in which the Canadian prime minister expressed concern about Chinese interference in Canadian affairs.
Their brief exchange G20 The summit in Indonesia was filmed by television cameras.
“Everything we discussed leaked on paper; it’s irrelevant,” Xi Jinping told Trudeau through an interpreter.
“Nor… the way the conversation is conducted, if there is any honesty on your part,” Mr. Xi he said, then Mr. Trudeau interrupted him.
“In CanadaWe believe in free, open and transparent dialogue and that is what we will continue to do,” Trudeau said.
“We will continue to work creatively together, but there will be things we cannot agree on.”
Mr. G looked around Trudeau answer.
“Let’s establish the conditions first,” Xi replied through an interpreter, before the two shook hands.
Canada’s prime minister and Xi spoke for the first time at the G20 summit last Tuesday.
A Canadian official said he discussed Ukraine, North Korea and climate change, with Trudeau expressing “our serious concerns about interference in Canada”.
Asked at a press conference later about the dispute, Trudeau said “not every conversation will be easy, but it’s very important that we continue to stand up for the things that matter to Canadians.”
“His face was red”
Guy Saint-Jacques, Canada’s former ambassador to China, said he believed Xi deliberately insulted Trudeau on camera.
“When he saw her, his face turned red and he waved his hand,” he said.
“He looks flustered. It was clear he wasn’t happy that Trudeau leaked the details of the meeting. Interestingly, he said the meeting didn’t go that way.”
Mr. St-Jacques said Mr. Xi wanted to send a message that Canada would not dictate the terms of the relationship and that Mr. Trudeau should pay attention.
“It is very unusual to see Xi Jinping engage in a public exercise to criticize someone,” Saint-Jacques added.
Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie also said she had discussed an intervention with her Chinese counterpart at the G20.
Ms Jolie said last week that China was an increasingly disruptive force and warned companies against deepening ties with the country.
Canadian police on Monday accused a Hydro-Quebec employee of espionage for transmitting trade secrets. China.
Relations between Beijing and Ottawa have also deteriorated in recent years, after Canadian authorities arrested a senior official at tech giant Huawei, whom the United States has accused of fraud.
China jailed the two Canadians shortly after Canada arrested Meng Wanzhou, Huawei’s chief financial officer and daughter of the company’s founder, following an extradition request from the United States.
They Returned to Canada last yearOn the same day, Meng returned to China after reaching an agreement with US authorities in her case.
Several countries have accused China of engaging in “hostage politics”, while Beijing has described the accusations against Huawei and Ms Meng as a politically motivated attempt to hinder China’s economic and technological development.
Canada has banned the establishment of wireless service providers Huawei Equipment on high-speed 5G networks joins allies including Britain to shun the company due to its proximity to the Communist Party and the People’s Liberation Army.
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