Dispute at the G20 summit in Indonesia: As a video on Twitter shows, Chinese head of state Xi Jinping (69) and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (50) got into a fight at the end of the summit.
Annoyed, Jinping complained to Trudeau about a lack of confidentiality after their bilateral meeting. “Everything we discussed yesterday was leaked to newspapers. That’s not appropriate.” That’s not the way to have the conversation.
“There will be things we disagree on”
Those who are serious lead the dialogue with mutual respect. “Otherwise it is difficult to say what the result will be,” Xi Jinping warned. Trudeau responded, “In Canada, we believe in free, open, and candid conversation.” Perhaps the dialogue can continue. He wants to cooperate “constructively” with Xi Jinping. “But there will be things we won’t agree on,” Canada’s prime minister said.
Xi Jinping seemed indignant and said, “Create the conditions.” Then he shook Trudeau’s hand, made another friendly face, and walked away. It was the first meeting between Trudeau and Xi Jinping in more than three years. However, unlike Xi Jinping’s meetings with other heads of state and government, it was not declared an official meeting. According to press reports, Trudeau complained about Chinese interference in Canadian democracy during the talks.
Relationships are strained. After the arrest of the chief financial officer of the telecommunications group Huawei, Meng Wanzhou (50), in 2018 at the request of the US, China arrested two Canadians and charged them with alleged espionage. Diplomats spoke of “hostage diplomacy”. After a long wrangling with the US judicial authorities, Meng Wanzhou was able to return to China in 2021 in barter, after which the two Canadians were only released. (SDA/dzc)