China rejects interference concerns after Carney says he will confront Xi Jinping
Mark Carney says he will tell Xi Jinping that China must stay out of Canada’s internal affairs. Beijing says it has no interest in interfering.
BEIJING, Nov 14 – Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney says he’ll tell Chinese President Xi Jinping that China must not interfere in Canada’s affairs. And China has already answered him.
The Carney-Xi meeting is set for next week in Shenzhen, in southern China. The two will meet on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, which runs from November 18 to 19.
Carney spoke to reporters on Tuesday. He said the talks will cover a lot of ground.
They will discuss security issues, trade and the economic relationship between the two countries.
Carney said those ties are growing, but he made clear that Canada has firm limits on what it will accept. He then turned to the issue of foreign interference.
Carney said one advantage of such meetings is the opportunity to raise concerns directly and speak candidly. He said he would make it clear that Canada expects China, and other countries, to refrain from interfering in its domestic affairs.
He also made a pointed comparison. Carney said the security risks associated with working with China are “much, much less than the security risk, for example, of the United States.”
It was a striking statement for a Canadian leader to make. But it reflects a broader shift in Ottawa’s approach. Canada has been seeking to reduce its reliance on the United States, its largest trading partner, while also working to stabilize relations with Beijing after years of tension.
Carney also addressed the appointment of Canada’s next ambassador to China.
He said the process had taken longer than he would have preferred, but that Ottawa wanted to select the right person for the role.
He said Canada has now identified that person and has formally submitted the name to Beijing. The appointment now awaits China’s approval, a standard step in diplomatic appointments.
Carney said he hopes to announce the appointment very soon.
China responded a day later.
On Wednesday, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said at a regular briefing in Beijing that China has consistently upheld the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries.
He said China “has no interest in interfering with Canada’s internal affairs.”
Beijing has made similar statements for years and has repeatedly denied allegations that it seeks to meddle in Canadian politics.
However, the issue has remained prominent in Canada.
In April 2025, Carney described China as one of the biggest threats to Canada’s foreign affairs. In 2024, a public inquiry also heard that Canada’s intelligence agency had found evidence of Chinese interference in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections.
Against that backdrop, the two leaders are expected to meet amid a complicated history of political, economic and security tensions.
The talks also come at a busy time for Carney in Asia. This week, he was in Manila, where he said Canada and the Philippines had finished talks on a free trade deal. He is now set to head to Shenzhen.
He will not be the only leader there. President Donald Trump is also expected at the summit. The White House has said he will meet Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the nuclear weapons deal.
Canada, China and the United States are all members of the Pacific Rim group, which comprises 21 economies.
Neither Ottawa nor Beijing has provided a detailed agenda for the talks between Carney and Xi. Officials are expected to address trade, investment, security and diplomatic cooperation, while the issue of foreign interference is likely to remain a sensitive point between the two governments.
