Serious diplomatic crisis between Ottawa and China has been going on for the last twenty-four hours, with both sides expelling diplomats, which may also lead to financial reprisals.

The Canadian government announced on Monday the expulsion of a Chinese diplomat it accused of trying to intimidate a Canadian lawmaker, a critic of China, plunging the two countries into a new diplomatic crisis for which Beijing blames Ottawa. “We will not tolerate any form of foreign interference in our internal affairs,” Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie said in a press release announcing the expulsion of diplomat Zhao Wei, who was declared persona non grata in Canada.

The decision was condemned by China – Canada’s second largest trading partner – accusing Ottawa of “sabotaging” already extremely strained bilateral relations. In retaliation, Beijing expels Canadian diplomat who was serving in Shanghai. The Chinese embassy in Canada in a statement further accused the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of “flagrantly violating not only international law but also the fundamental norms of bilateral relations.”

“The decision was taken after careful consideration of all factors,” noted the Canadian Foreign Ministry, citing the “defense of democracy” in Canada.
Tensions had risen since last week when China’s ambassador was summoned to Canada’s foreign ministry, citing “slander” and “defamation” on the part of Canada. According to a source familiar with the case, Zhao Wei, who served at the Chinese consulate in Toronto, will be deported within the next five days.

Ottawa accuses him of being at the heart of efforts to intimidate a Canadian right-wing MP. Michael Chong and his family had come under Chinese pressure due to criticism of the opposition politician in Beijing, especially on the Uyghur issue.

For weeks, Mr. Trudeau’s government has been under increasing pressure to raise the tone against China, which it accuses of meddling in Canadian affairs. Press revelations raised the pressure another notch. “There was (…) real political danger for the Trudeau government. So she decided to take the risk of showing her muscles,” explains Genevieve Tellier, a professor at the University of Ottawa.

“Financial retaliation”?

Relations between Beijing and Ottawa had already soured in recent years, especially after the 2018 arrest of the founder’s daughter and chief financial officer of the company Huawei, of a Chinese telecommunications giant, and China’s imprisonment of two Canadians in retaliation. Although the three were eventually released, tensions have not subsided, with Beijing criticizing Ottawa for aligning its policy toward China with that of Washington and Canadian authorities frequently alleging Chinese meddling in Canadian affairs.

In particular, China is accused of trying to interfere in the elections held in Canada in 2019 and 2021. In a series of articles published in Canadian media, there was talk of secret funding and involvement in the campaign of some candidates, accusations that Beijing “vehemently” denied.
In recent months, Canada has gradually hardened its positions, expelling Chinese companies from the rare earth industry in the name of “national security”, publicly denouncing Beijing’s treatment of the Muslim Uyghur minority, unveiling its strategy for the Asian periphery -Pacific, with the central purpose of countering China’s influence…

Speaking to Agence France-Presse, Rorom Sandal, a professor at the School of Public Studies in Moncton (eastern Canada), an expert on China, estimated that “Beijing can also take financial retaliatory measures, even more so because it will also be a way to send a message to other countries that talk about Chinese meddling in their internal affairs.”