'We will not be intimidated': PM Trudeau says after China retaliates, expels Canadian diplomat
Beijing declared a Canadian diplomat as "persona non grata" Tuesday in retaliation for Ottawa's expulsion of a Chinese consular official over allegations of foreign interference.
Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said she would speak Tuesday afternoon with Shanghai consul Jennifer Lynn Lalonde. Joly described her in French as "a very respected career diplomat."
Earlier Tuesday, Beijing declared it would expel Lalonde in retaliation for Canada sending a Chinese envoy packing.
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service hasalleged Zhao Wei, a consular officer for China in Toronto, was involved in a plot to intimidate Conservative MP Michael Chong and his relatives in Hong Kong.
On Monday Canada declared Zhao as "persona non grata," ordering him to leave the country days after noting that such a move would likely lead to consequences.
"What we decided to do was based on us considering all factors," Joly said Tuesday in English.
"It needed to be thoughtful, it needed to take some time, and we needed to make sure that we did this in a very serious manner."
China's Foreign Ministry said in a statement posted to its English website early Tuesday that China was deploying a "reciprocal countermeasure to Canada's unscrupulous move," which it said it "strongly condemns and firmly opposes."
The statement said Lalonde, a consul working out of the Consulate General of Canada in Shanghai, has been asked to leave before May 13, and that China reserves the right to further react.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his government would stand firm.
"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 Tuesday morning as he headed into a meeting with his cabinet on Parliament Hill.
"We understand there is retaliation but we will not be intimidated," he added. "We will continue to do everything necessary to keep Canadians protected from interference."
Joly said the federal government will update its guidance to travellers if it perceives the risk to Canadians in China as rising higher than its current level.
The current travel advisory asks Canadians to "exercise a high degree of caution in China due to the risk of arbitrary enforcement of local laws."
Calls for Zhao to be expelled began last week after a report in the Globe and Mail that Canada's spy agency, CSIS, had information in 2021 alleging the Chinese government was looking at ways to intimidate Chong and his relatives in Hong Kong. The federal government has confirmed that report.
Following Joly's announcement on Monday, China's embassy in Ottawa issued a statement that accused Canada of breaching international law and acting based on anti-Chinese sentiment.
It said the move "sabotaged" relations between China and Canada, according to an official English translation provided by the embassy, and promised unspecified retaliatory measures.
Trudeau said Tuesday that his government had taken the potential for retaliation, including economic countermeasures, by China into account when it decided to expel the envoy.
"We will always do whatever is necessary to keep Canadians safe," Trudeau said.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino would not say Tuesday who is at fault for Chong not being notified in 2021 that CSIS believed Beijing might target him and his relatives.
"Of course I've got confidence in CSIS. I mean, these are individuals who work to protect our national security every day," Mendicino testified to the House foreign-affairs committee.
"The only people that I think that we need to be united in holding accountable are the hostile actors who are attempting to undermine our democratic institutions."
Mendicino noted that Trudeau has now directed CSIS to always brief the public safety minister and the prime minister when the agency believes a member of Parliament might be targeted by a foreign state. He said Ottawa might expand this to directive to include elected officials at the provincial and municipal levels.
Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner told reporters Tuesday that Ottawa needs to act to restore trust in democracy. She argued tools like a foreign agent registry would add transparency and prevent the public from linking diaspora communities with foreign states.
"I hope that across the partisan spectrum in Canada, people understand how serious this is, and this is actually a threat to our sovereignty and our democracy," she told reporters.
"Government is causing a threat to our pluralism and this needs to be dealt with really quickly, to restore trust in government institutions."
The government is consulting about setting up a registry but has not provided a timeline for when one may come into existence.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 9, 2023.
IN DEPTH
Jagmeet Singh pulls NDP out of deal with Trudeau Liberals, takes aim at Poilievre Conservatives
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has pulled his party out of the supply-and-confidence agreement that had been helping keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberals in power.
'Not the result we wanted': Trudeau responds after surprise Conservative byelection win in Liberal stronghold
Conservative candidate Don Stewart winning the closely-watched Toronto-St. Paul's federal byelection, and delivering a stunning upset to Justin Trudeau's candidate Leslie Church in the long-time Liberal riding, has sent political shockwaves through both parties.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Pat King found guilty of mischief for role in 'Freedom Convoy'
Pat King, one of the most prominent figures of the 2022 'Freedom Convoy' in Ottawa, has been found guilty on five counts including mischief and disobeying a court order.
BREAKING Quebec man, 81, gets prison sentence after admitting to killing wife with Alzheimer's disease
An 81-year-old Quebec man has been sentenced to prison after admitting to killing his wife with Alzheimer's disease.
Canada's tax relief plan: Who gets a cheque?
The Canadian government has unveiled its plans for a sweeping GST/HST pause on select items during the holiday period. The day after the announcement, questions remain on how the whole thing will work.
Canada issues travel warning after 6 people die from tainted alcohol in Laos
The Canadian government is warning travellers following the deaths of at least six people in the mass poisoning of foreign tourists in Laos after drinking tainted alcohol.
Canada's new income tax brackets in 2025: What you need to know
The Canada Revenue Agency has released updated federal income tax brackets for 2025, reflecting adjustments for inflation. Here’s the breakdown.
Unruly passenger duct-taped after trying to open a plane's door mid-flight
An assertive group of cross-country travellers pinned and duct-taped an unruly passenger mid-flight, after he allegedly tried to open a plane door at 30,000 feet.
Young man arrested after 'disturbing' sexual notes left for women, B.C. RCMP say
A young man has been arrested after multiple women reported receiving “disturbing” sexual notes – or in some cases underwear – in the same Burnaby, B.C., neighbourhood over recent months, the RCMP announced Thursday.
Enslaved on OnlyFans: Women recount torment and sexual servitude
OnlyFans says it empowers content creators, particularly women, to monetize sexually explicit images and videos in a safe online environment. But a Reuters investigation found women who said they had been deceived, drugged, terrorized and sexually enslaved to make money from the site.
Trump granted permission to seek dismissal of hush money case
A New York judge on Friday granted Donald Trump permission to seek dismissal of his hush money criminal case, in which he was found guilty earlier this year, in light of his victory in the Nov. 5 U.S. presidential election.
Local Spotlight
Video shows octopus 'hanging on for dear life' during bomb cyclone off B.C. coast
Humans weren’t the only ones who struggled through the bomb cyclone that formed off the B.C. coast this week, bringing intense winds and choppy seas.
B.C. man reunites with Nova Scotia stranger, 56 years after being saved from drowning
After driving near the water that winter day, Brian Lavery thought he saw a dog splashing in the waves – then realized it was way too cold for that.
'It's nice to just talk to people': Toronto podcaster prank calling Nova Scotians
Toronto radio and podcast host Jax Irwin has recently gone viral for videos of her cute -- and at times confusing -- phone conversations.
'I'm just tickled pink': Childhood friends from New Brunswick named Rhodes Scholars
Two young women from New Brunswick have won one of the most prestigious and sought-after academic honours in the world.
B.C. man to cycle length of New Zealand to raise funds for Movember
Stretching 3,000 kilometres from the tip of New Zealand to its southernmost point, with just a bicycle for transport and a tent to call home, bikepacking event Tour Aotearoa is not for the faint of heart.
'She's a people person': Urban chicken inspires positivity in B.C. neighbourhood
When he first moved to his urban neighbourhood, Barry Devonald was surprised to be welcomed by a whole flock of new neighbours.
'A little piece of history': Winnipeg homeowner finds 80-year-old letters hidden in walls
When George Arcioni began renovating his kitchen last summer, he didn’t expect to find a stack of letters hidden in the wall behind his oven.
Love story: Nova Scotia couple gets engaged at Taylor Swift’s Toronto show
A Nova Scotia couple fulfilled their wildest dreams Thursday night when they got engaged at Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in Toronto.
WATCH 'Fireball' meteor lights up Calgary's sky
Some Calgary residents caught what appeared to be a meteor streaking across the sky early on Wednesday morning.