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Chinese President Xi Jinping has humiliated Justin Trudeau by giving him a dressing down after their conversation at the G20 was leaked to the press.
The two leaders were caught on camera having a heated discussion on the sidelines of the global summit in Bali today, with Xi tearing into the Canadian Prime Minister.
Xi appeared visibly frustrated as he confronted Trudeau about how details of their meeting, which was held yesterday, had been leaked to the press by Canadian government sources.
The source had told the media that Trudeau had raised ‘serious concerns’ over suspected domestic interference by China during his first talks with Xi in more than three years.
Xinping, trying to mask his anger with a pointed smile, was filmed by Canadian journalists telling a seemingly embarrassed Trudeau: ‘Everything that we discussed yesterday has been leaked to the papers and that’s not appropriate.’
Trudeau just nodded while standing awkwardly as Xinping continued his rant.
The Chinese President looked pointedly at Trudeau and added: ‘And that’s not the way the conversation was conducted.’
Trudeau, knowing that details of his meeting with Xi had been leaked by his Canadian government sources, did not address the Chinese President’s concerns and instead gave a hapless response.
The two leaders were caught on camera having a heated discussion on the sidelines of the global summit in Bali today, with Xi tearing into the Canadian Prime Minister (pictured during the conversation today)
Trudeau just nodded while standing awkwardly as Xinping continued his rant
Xi appeared visibly frustrated as he confronted Trudeau about how details of their meeting, which was held yesterday, had been leaked to the press by Canadian government sources
Xinping, trying to mask his anger with a pointed smile, was filmed by Canadian journalists telling a seemingly embarrassed Trudeau: ‘Everything that we discussed yesterday has been leaked to the papers and that’s not appropriate.’
Trudeau said: ‘Well in Canada, we believe in free and open and frank dialogue, which we will continue to have. We will continue to look to work constructively together but there will be things that we will disagree on.’
While Trudeau is speaking, Xi looks frustrated as he refrains from making eye contact with the Canadian Prime Minister.
Xi then smiles broadly and reaches out and shakes Trudeau’s hand in a tense and awkward exchange.
Trudeau is seen awkwardly walking off after his dressing down, all while Xi smiles at the camera.
It comes after a Canadian government source said Trudeau raised ‘serious concerns’ over suspected domestic interference by China in his first talks with Xi on Tuesday in more than three years.
Ottawa has in recent weeks accused the Chinese government of interfering with its democratic institutions and judicial system, after years of strained relations between the two countries.
While Trudeau is speaking, Xi looks frustrated as he refrains from making eye contact with the Canadian Prime Minister. Xi then smiles broadly and reaches out and shakes Trudeau’s hand in a tense and awkward exchange
It comes after a Canadian government source said Trudeau raised ‘serious concerns’ over suspected domestic interference by China in his first talks with Xi on Tuesday (pictured) in more than three years
Today, Trudeau said he had discussed the issue of Chinese interference in Canadian affairs again today on the sidelines of the summit. This conversation was the one filmed by Canadian journalists.
‘I have raised the issue of interference with our citizens,’ Trudeau told a news conference on the Indonesian resort island on Wednesday.
Trudeau met Xi on Tuesday, the first face-to-face dialogue between the two leaders since 2019.
He said he told the Chinese leader, who last month secured an historic third term, ‘it is important to be able to have a dialogue about this’.
Canadian federal police said on Thursday they were investigating so-called police stations set up illegally by China in the North American country.
Trudeau also said last week China was playing ‘aggressive games’ after Canadian broadcaster Global News reported on a ‘clandestine network’ of federal election candidates funded by Beijing.
‘It’s extremely important we continue to stand up for the things that are important for Canadians,’ Trudeau told reporters.
He said he also highlighted ‘areas of mutual concern and geopolitical challenges’ in his talk with Xi, including the war in Ukraine and tensions on the Korean peninsula.
China’s foreign ministry declined on Wednesday to confirm any details of the conversation between the two leaders. Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said she had no information when asked about the meeting.
Diplomatic tensions between Canada and China have been running high since the detention of Huawei Technologies executive Meng Wanzhou in 2018 and Beijing’s subsequent arrest of two Canadians on spying charges.
While the standoff ended when all three people were released last year, relations have remained sour. Citing national security concerns, Ottawa banned the use of 5G gear from Huawei in May and earlier this month ordered three Chinese companies to divest from critical minerals in Canada.
Trudeau and Xi last met in June of 2019 on the sidelines of another G20 in Osaka, Japan. The met three other times previously, once in 2015 on the sidelines of the G20 in Turkey, and twice during official visits to Beijing in 2016 and 2017.
The Canadian government is poised to launch a so-called Indo-Pacific Strategy that Foreign Minister Melanie Joly says will challenge China on human rights, while seeking cooperation with the world’s second-biggest economy on climate change and other shared goals.