Beijing to host Canadian foreign minister for visit

By Barry Ellsworth

TRENTON, Canada (AA) - Foreign Minister Melanie Joly will be in China on Friday to thaw relations that have been in the deep freeze since two Canadians were imprisoned and Beijing was accused of meddling in Canadian affairs, according to her office.

Joly will engage in talks with her Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, to “discuss Canada-China relations as well as complex global and regional security issues.”

“As the world faces increasingly complex and intersecting global issues, Canada is committed to engaging pragmatically with a wide range of countries to advance our national interests and uphold our values,” Joly said in a statement. “(We) must maintain open lines of communication and use diplomacy to challenge where we ought to, while seeking co-operation in areas that matter to most Canadians.”

Relations between the two countries significantly chilled when in 2018, Canada, at the request of the US, detained Meng Wanzhou on an extradition warrant. She was wanted in the US on fraud allegations.

Beijing was incensed and demanded her immediate release. When that did not happen, China arrested two Canadians, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor on allegations of espionage.

The arrests were widely perceived as retaliation for the detention of Meng, chief financial officer of Chinese tech company, Huawei. The so-called “Two-Michaels” were released in September 2021 after the US dropped the charges and the extradition warrant.

Relations did not improve as the Globe and Mail newspaper and Global TV obtained classified intelligence documents that alleged China interfered in the Canadian elections in 2019 and 2021.

As well, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said there was “credible” evidence that China established several so-called police stations in Canada that were set up to intimidate Chinese Canadians.