BEIJING (Dispatches) — China announced the expulsion of a Canadian diplomat on Tuesday in retaliation for Ottawa ordering a Chinese consular official to leave the country over alleged threats he made against a Canadian lawmaker and his family.
The Foreign Ministry said China was deploying a “reciprocal countermeasure to Canada’s unscrupulous move,” which it said it “firmly opposes.”
It said Jennnifer Lynn Lalonde, the top Canadian diplomat in the business hub of Shanghai, has been asked to leave by May 13 and that China “reserves the right to take further actions in response.”
Canada earlier on Tuesday said that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government was expelling a Chinese diplomat whom Canada’s spy agency alleged was involved in a plot to intimidate an opposition lawmaker and his relatives in Hong Kong.
China took control of the former British colony in 1997.
A senior Canadian government official said Toronto-based diplomat Zhao Wei has five days to leave the country. It wasn’t immediately clear if Zhao was still in Canada.
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said in a statement that Canada declared Zhao “persona non grata” and that Canada would “not tolerate any form of foreign interference in our internal affairs.”
Canada’s spy service indicated that in 2021, opposition Conservative lawmaker Michael Chong and his Hong Kong relatives were targeted. Canada’s spy agency has not released details publicly.
Chong has been critical of Beijing’s treatment of members of the Turkic Muslim Uyghur ethnic group in China’s Xinjiang region.
In a statement posted on its website, the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa said Zhao’s expulsion was “based on rumors of the so-called ‘China Interference’ hyped up by some politicians and media.”
“This has seriously violated international law, basic norms governing international relations and the related bilateral agreements, and sabotaged the China-Canada relations,” the statement said. It added that “all consequences arising therefrom shall be borne by the Canadian side.”
“China never interferes in other countries’ internal affairs,” it said.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin doubled down on China’s rejection of the accusations and threats to take further action against Canada.
“China is unwavering in its determination to safeguard its own interests,” Wang told reporters at a daily briefing.
“We urge the Canadian side to immediately stop unreasonable provocations. If Canada does not listen to the advice and acts recklessly, China will fight back resolutely and forcefully, and the Canadian side must bear all the consequences arising from this.”