Justin Trudeau, Xi Jinping Share Tense Moment as Chinese President Takes Issue with Media Leaks

Canadian Prime Minister Justine Trudeau and Chinese President Xi Jinping shared a tense moment following the G20 Summit over media leaks of the two world leaders' conversations.

The leader of China's Communist Party took a stern tone with Trudeau on Wednesday, complaining about "inappropriate" leaks to the media. The confrontation between the two leaders followed their conversations on the sidelines of the global summit, with Trudeau raising concern about Chinese attempts to influence his country.

Justin Trudeau and Xi Jinping

In a video, Xi could be heard, via a translator, saying that everything he and Trudeau discussed was leaked to the papers, calling the situation inappropriate. The Asian leader added that it was not the way that the conversation was conducted.

On the other hand, the Canadian prime minister pushed back against the Chinese president, saying that he believes in free, open, and frank dialogue, adding that it would be what would continue to have, as per Fox News.

Recently, Trudeau has been outspokenly critical of President Xi's international politicking, accusing the Asian nation of "playing aggressive games" to influence Canadian democracy. The Canadian leader also said that they would continue to work on cooperating with each other, but noted that there would be things that they do not agree on.

The situation came as United States President Joe Biden met with the Chinese leader on the sidelines of the G20 Summit as well. It marked the first time that the Democrat and the Asian leader met personally since the former took office.

According to CNN, the video of Trudeau and Xi speaking is a rare showing of how the Asian president interacts with other world leaders as his public appearances are highly choreographed. The meeting also came as China looks to reassert its global influence at the summit on the island of Bali in Indonesia after a nearly three-year absence from the world stage.

Canada-China Relations

China's relationship with various United States allies has declined to differing degrees in the last few years. Some of the reasons for this include rising geopolitical tensions, disputes over trade, and the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. The situation is also partly caused by Beijing's growing partnership with Moscow amid Russia's war on Ukraine.

The Chinese president aimed to restore relationships at the summit as he held formal talks with the leaders of various nations, including Australia, France, the Netherlands, South Africa, Spain, Senegal, Argentina, Indonesia, and South Korea.

Xi's talk with Trudeau came as Canada was not given such a meeting as other nations, which relates to the two countries' tense relationship. This was caused after senior Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou was detained in Canada in 2018, followed by two Canadians being detained in China nine days later.

Tensions between Canada and China rose further recently after the arrest of a public utility worker at Hydro-Quebec, Yuesheng Wang, over charges of espionage. The Chinese national allegedly "obtained trade secrets to benefit the People's Republic of China, to the detriment of Canada's economic interests," said Canadian police, BBC reported.

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Xi Jinping, Canada, China