Mar 29 2021 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — A Chinese diplomat called Justin Trudeau “boy” in a sneering attack on the Canadian prime minister that comes as Beijing sees fresh signs of success in its ongoing shift to confrontational diplomacy — particularly against countries it sees as weaker. “Boy, your greatest achievement is to have ruined the friendly relations between China and Canada, […]
Mar 23 2021 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — China’s embassy in Ottawa says Canada has no authority to lecture it over abuses, as Beijing staged an irate response to sanctions imposed on leaders accused of co-ordinating policies that grossly violated human rights in the northwestern Xinjiang region. “Canada is in no position to act as a ‘teacher’ on human rights issues, or to […]
Mar 11 2021 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — The editor of a Communist Party-run newspaper says that two Canadians arrested in China are likely to be in court shortly, a step that stands to further complicate efforts to advocate for their release. China’s judicial authorities will launch a first trial “soon” for Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, Global Times editor Hu Xijin wrote […]
Feb 1 2021 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — The Chinese government has found new cause for anger against Canada: a Canadian diplomat’s order of hip-hop-inspired T-shirts emblazoned with a bat-like image around the words “Wu-Han.” The design is a play on the iconic emblem of the Wu-Tang Clan, the New York rap group that helped define the sound of the 1990s. That logo’s […]
Jan 14 2021 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — Canada and Britain are acting out a “farce” in taking action against forced labour in China, a government spokesman in Beijing said Wednesday, accusing foreign countries of spreading lies. Evidence of forced labour in China’s western Xinjiang region comes from numerous sources, including Muslims who have been compelled to work in factories, state media reports […]
Nov 16 2020 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — The Chinese government says Canada better fits the definition of a state committing genocide than the Xinjiang region, pointing to population growth rates – some inaccurate – that it says demonstrate it has not mistreated its Uyghur population. China’s foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian also scoffed at the “ignorance” of Bob Rae, the Canadian ambassador […]
Nov 9 2020 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — Seven hundred days after Chinese authorities locked up Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, the election of a new U.S. president has given rise to new hope that the men could be freed – and new cautions that those hopes are faint at best. The two Canadians were seized by Chinese state security agents on Dec. […]
Oct 15 2020 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — The Confucius Institute, a controversial Chinese-backed educational organization, has taken a direct role in supporting Mandarin classes in some British Columbia schools while also asking local officials to report back on political developments, according to documents obtained by The Globe and Mail. For years, School District No. 43 in Coquitlam, B.C., has dismissed critics of […]
Sep 18 2020 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — Foreign Affairs Minister denounces Beijing’s ‘assertive, coercive diplomacy’ and questions whether the countries can return to the spirit of co-operation raised four years ago.
Jul 31 2020 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — Less than two weeks after Chinese authorities formally charged two Canadians with espionage, Ambassador Dominic Barton travelled nearly 700 kilometres from Beijing, hoping to end a half year of being barred from seeing Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor. The unusual Canada Day trip brought Mr. Barton to Shenyang, the capital of Liaoning province. Mr. Spavor […]
Jul 6 2020 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — The Chinese government has once again threatened to punish Canada, in a new round of verbal attacks from a foreign ministry with a lengthening list of targets among western countries critical of Beijing’s policies. China on Monday lashed out at measures taken by Canada last week in response to a new national security law imposed […]
May 26 2020 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — The Chinese government has issued a new warning to Canada about further “damage” to relations between the two countries – days before a British Columbia judge releases a decision on an extradition hearing for Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou. Canada must “release Ms. Meng and ensure her safe return to China at an early date to […]
May 12 2020 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — Canadian researchers are joining the effort to develop a Chinese vaccine against the deadly coronavirus, with plans to begin human trials in Canada of a potential defence against COVID-19 that employs genetic technology from the National Research Council. The trials will bring to Canadian soil Ad5-nCoV, a vaccine candidate under joint development by a Chinese […]
May 11 2020 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — Chinese authorities have sentenced to prison a couple who immigrated to Canada nearly two decades ago, accusing them of defecting with military secrets. It is the latest case to entangle Canada in a geopolitical battle between the United States and China. Peter Wang and Ruqin Zhao are Chinese-born engineers who worked in the Toronto area, […]
Apr 11 2020 — Nathan VanderKlippe — Globe and Mail — For seven years, Felix Li served on the distant front lines of Canadian public health, in China. As a doctor posted to Beijing, he fostered ties with health authorities that let him peer beneath the official rhetoric of a country that has been the source of multiple viral epidemics in recent decades. When Dr. Li […]