EFE.- Chinese President Xi Jinping confronted Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the G20 summit in Indonesia to accuse him of leaking a private conversation between the two to the press. moment recorded by Canadian cameras until it went viral in the final hours.
In a highly unusual picture for the usual hierarchical nature of Chinese leaders, Xi for once broke protocol to accuse the Canadian, in front of the cameras, of leaking the contents of a previously held private meeting.
“Everything we discussed was leaked in the papers. It’s not appropriate, nor is it the way our conversation was conducted.”Xi cracked down on Trudeau in the presence of a translator.
“If you’re being honest, we need to communicate with mutual respect. Otherwise, I don’t really know what will happen,” he added.
Trudeau, unmoved by the rebuke, replied that “in Canada, we believe in free, open and frank dialogue”, and that “this is what we will continue to have”.
“We will continue to seek to work together constructively, but there will be things we will not agree on,” he added.
Xi then interrupted the Canadian leader to ask him twice to “create the conditions” to keep talking, before smiling, shaking hands and leaving.
The interaction between the two was recorded by Canadian reporters accompanying Trudeau and went viral following its posting on social media such as Twitter by CTV National News.
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Feud between Xi and Trudeau goes viral
According to the Canadian press, the Chinese leader’s anger stems from the fact that the daily national post reported that in a conversation last Tuesday, Trudeau told him of “serious concerns” about China’s alleged interference in the 2019 Canadian election.
According to CTV News, of the 10-minute casual conversation the two had on Tuesday during the opening session of the G20 summit, initiated by Trudeau, it was also leaked that the Canadian prime minister had confronted Xi over his stance on climate change.
Although no details were given on the issues discussed, the Canadian press reported that other issues raised by Trudeau with Xi were the Russian invasion of Ukraine, respect for human rights and the launch of ballistic missiles by North Korea, as well as the importance of maintaining dialogue
According to statements by the Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mélanie Joly, reported by the Canadian press, the exchange between Xi and Trudeau had been “respectful”.
“It was a good conversation and it’s really important to keep the channels open”Joly, who also met his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, on Tuesday, told him that it is China’s responsibility to “show that it meets international standards”.
Tuesday was the first time Trudeau and Xi had met in more than three years, after ties between the two countries deteriorated sharply following the 2018 arrest in Canada of leader Meng Wangzhou (of Chinese technology company Huawei) at the request of the United States.
Shortly after, Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor were arrested in China and tried for espionage, and they weren’t released until Canada freed Meng.
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