Xi Jinping Scolds Justin Trudeau over Media Leak at G20 Summit: ‘Not Appropriate’

Chinese president Xi Jinping on Wednesday scolded Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau over an alleged media leak of details from an informal conversation the pair had one day earlier.

“Everything we discussed has been leaked to the paper. That’s not appropriate,” Xi told Trudeau at the G20 leaders summit in Bali, according to video of the discussion. “And that’s not the way the conversation was conducted…if there is sincerity on your part…we would conduct good communications with a mutually respectful manner. Otherwise the results would be hard to tell.”

Canadian media reported that Xi and Trudeau spoke on Tuesday, at which point the Canadian prime minister raised “serious concerns” about China’s alleged interference in Canadian affairs.

Trudeau replied to Xi’s chastising on Wednesday, “In Canada, we believe in a free and open and frank dialogue. We will continue to have…We will continue to work constructively together but there will be things that we will disagree on.”

“Let’s create the conditions first,” Xi replied, shaking Trudeau’s hand before stepping away. 

Beijing and Ottawa have had an icy relationship since Canada arrested a senior executive of China’s Huawei Technologies, Meng Wanzhou, in 2018 on behalf of the U.S. China later imprisoned two Canadians on spying charges. All three were released last year.

Trudeau’s mention of “interference” likely refers to a Canadian media report earlier this month that said intelligence officials believe China meddled in the 2019 Canadian election, Reuters reported. Police also arrested an employee at Canada’s largest electricity producer for allegedly trying to steal trade secrets on China’s behalf.

Xi held formal talks with leaders from several countries at the summit, including the U.S., France and Australia, but did not have a formal meeting with Trudeau.

A spokeswoman for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said she had “nothing to share at the moment” when she was asking about the informal discussion with Trudeau during a regular briefing.

Trudeau told reporters on Wednesday that he had defended his country’s interests in his conversations with Xi.

“I won’t shy away from being open with Canadians even as we discuss important and sometimes delicate subjects,” he said, adding that he noted areas where the two countries have mutual interests, including geopolitical challenges stemming from the war in Ukraine and uncertainty in North Korea.

“I also highlighted things of preoccupation to Canadians, like the question of interference with our citizens and highlighted that it’s important that we be able to have dialogue about this,” Trudeau said.