(Ottawa) The allegations of Chinese interference that leaked to the media are reminiscent of the erroneous information that had circulated about the presence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, the right arm of Minister Mélanie Joly said Thursday. . Before him, the CSIS boss had flatly refused to comment on them. And at the end of a river meeting of more than seven hours, a motion calling for a public inquiry was adopted.
Deputy Foreign Minister David Morrison has launched a full-throated charge against reports of Chinese interference in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections, criticizing the reliance on sources whose remarks are of “rumor”, which raises concerns that probably make Canada’s enemies happy, according to him.
Without naming the media whose reports he cut to pieces, the senior official wondered how gestures such as those described in recent weeks by the Globe and Mail and Global News may have been made while “others, including [lui]themselves maintain that there was no detected interference in 2019 or 2021 that threatens Canada’s ability to hold free and fair elections.
Relying on written notes, the Deputy Minister insisted that the information collected by the security agencies “rarely allowed us to paint a complete or concrete portrait”, came “almost always with serious caveats”, and was “intended to warn informed consumers such as [lui]-even not to draw hasty conclusions.
He concluded his testimony by referring to information presented to the United Nations in 2003 by former US Secretary of State Colin Powell about the alleged presence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq allegedly developed by Saddam Hussein. “There are glaring historical examples of information that is just plain wrong. The war in Iraq comes to mind,” he said.
“There is nothing our enemies would love more than to divide Canadians,” concluded David Morrison.
Canada’s chief spy keeps his secrets
The head of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), David Vigneault, had earlier been pressed with questions by elected officials, but he had not bitten. His testimony can be summed up in this sentence: “It is not because information is reported in the media that I am free to talk about it. »
He justified this reservation by arguing that it would be counterproductive to publicly discuss the methods and strategies used by CSIS, as this would allow foreign or malicious states, whose tactics are constantly evolving, to adjust in result.
CSIS takes allegations of unauthorized disclosure of confidential information very seriously. Such breaches can expose sensitive sources, methods and techniques to Canada’s adversaries. They listen.
David Vigneault, Director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, in his opening statement
Mr. Vigneault was more outspoken when he spoke of the threat posed by Chinese interference in the Canadian democratic process, which operates at “all levels of government: federal, provincial and municipal” and which targets candidates for all parties.
In this sense, creating a register of foreign agents would be relevant, in his opinion. “I think it would be an important tool. It would not solve all the problems, but it would be one more tool for transparency, ”said the man who has been in office since 2017.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Wednesday that his government was studying this option.
No “circus”, but a public inquiry
The session gave rise to acerbic exchanges, in particular between David Morrison and the Tory MP Michael Cooper, who concluded the last hour by pointing his index finger at the table. ” Zero. Zero, zero, zero, zero,” he rumbled, pacing his remarks over the table with his finger, after the deputy minister confirmed to him that the government had not expelled any Chinese diplomats since 2019.
PHOTO SPENCER COLBY, THE CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Conservative MP Michael Cooper
New Democrat Peter Julian later brandished the behavior of the Alberta elected official, his “circus”, as proof that the most appropriate forum for obtaining answers on foreign interference was not a committee of the House of Commons, but a public inquiry.
This is what the majority of the members of the committee demanded after more than seven hours of meeting. A motion to that effect, which the five Liberals on the committee opposed, will be presented to the House of Commons.
The motion is not binding; the government is not bound to respect the will of the committee.
Mr. Trudeau has so far resisted the idea of a public inquiry.
Complaints to the Commissioner of Elections
The procedure and House affairs committee was meeting for the second time in two days on Thursday to continue its study of Chinese interference in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections.
During the first hour, the deputies welcomed the Chief Electoral Officer, Stéphane Perrault, as well as the Commissioner of Canada Elections, Caroline Simard. The latter specified that her office had received 158 complaints in connection with 10 situations for the 2019 election, and 16 complaints in connection with 13 situations in the case of the 2021 campaign.
No interference in Quebec, according to François Legault
There was no foreign interference during the 2022 Quebec elections, Prime Minister François Legault suggested Thursday in Quebec. Asked during a scrum to find out if he had been assured of the absence of foreign interference during the last election campaign, Mr. Legault was succinct. “Me, I have no indications that there would have been interference,” he replied, at the end of a long interview in the afternoon with the mayor of Quebec, Bruno Marchand. , at City Hall. However, he did not say where he got his information or whether his government had carried out any checks. Élections Québec, which guarantees the integrity, transparency and reliability of the Québec electoral process, also indicates that it has not found anything that could be related to foreign intervention in the electoral campaign. “Nothing leads us to believe that there was illegal political funding from abroad during the last provincial elections,” said spokesperson Julie St-Arnaud-Drolet, in an interview with The Canadian Press.
The Canadian Press