The eviction comes after Canada said it would send home a Chinese diplomat amid an alleged attempt to intimidate a Canadian lawmaker.
China’s foreign ministry will expel a Canadian diplomat from the Shanghai consulate as a “mutual countermeasure” hours after Canada declared a Chinese diplomat at the Chinese consulate in Toronto to be “persona non grata” for allegedly being involved in a campaign to kill a. Intimidate Canadian legislator who criticizes Beijing.
“As a mutual countermeasure in response to Canada’s unscrupulous action, China has decided to declare Jennifer Lynn Lalonde, consul of the Consulate General of Canada in Shanghai, persona non grata,” China’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
Lalonde has been asked to leave China before May 13, it added.
In a statement Monday, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said Ottawa would expel Chinese diplomat Zhao Wei over the harassment campaign.
“I have been clear: we will not tolerate any form of foreign interference in our internal affairs. Diplomats in Canada have been warned that if they engage in this kind of behavior they will be sent home,” Joly said.
The uproar began last month when Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail reported that Beijing had sought information on relatives of a Canadian lawmaker who may be in China, in a likely attempt to “set an example for this MP” by targeting his close relatives to dissuade others in Canada from taking positions against the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
The newspaper quoted a report from the Canadian spy agency. The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) report did not name the legislator, but the Globe said a national security source identified the politician as Michael Chong, a member of Canada’s Conservative Opposition Party. According to reports, a Chinese official from the Chinese consulate in Toronto is said to be involved in the intrigue.
China sanctioned Chong in 2021 after he led a Canadian parliamentary motion condemning Beijing’s treatment of its Uyghur Muslim minority as a “genocide”.
Chong welcomed the move, but said “it shouldn’t have taken so long”.
“We’ve known for years that the People’s Republic of China is using its accredited diplomats here in Canada to attack Canadians and their families,” Chong told a news conference.
“I hope this makes it clear not only to the People’s Republic of China, but also to other authoritarian states represented here in Canada, that this crossing of the line from diplomacy into foreign interference threat activity here on Canadian soil is completely unacceptable,” he said.
Relations between China and Canada have been frosty for several years, especially after Canadian authorities detained Huawei Technologies executive Meng Wanzhou in 2018 on a US arrest warrant. China subsequently arrested two Canadians on espionage charges.
The standoff ended when all three people were released in 2021, but relations have remained sour over several points of contention, including human rights and trade.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has also faced increasing calls in recent months to investigate allegations that the Chinese government has interfered in the country’s elections and is operating secret “police stations” in Canada.
Beijing has denied all of these claims.