At the Group of Twenty (G20) Summit in Bali, Indonesia, Chinese President Xi Jinping confronted Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau over “media leaks” and also spoke with U.S. President Joe Biden about human rights and Taiwan.
Annie Bergeron-Oliver, a Canadian reporter, posted a video of Trudeau and Xi’s sideline interaction at the summit on Twitter on Wednesday.
In the video, Xi can be heard criticizing Trudeau for behaving “inappropriately” by leaking their meeting details to the media.
“The Cdn Pool cam captured a tough talk between Chinese President Xi & PM Trudeau at the G20 today. In it, Xi expressed his displeasure that everything discussed yesterday ‘has been leaked to the paper(s), that’s not appropriate… and that’s not the way the conversation was conducted,’” Oliver wrote in her post.
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“Everything we decided has been leaked to the papers that’s not appropriate… and that’s not the way the conversation was conducted,” Xi said through an interpreter. “If you are sincere, we should communicate with each other in a respectful manner, otherwise it will be hard to say what the result will be like.”
In response, Trudeau said that Canada believed in “free and open and frank dialogue.”
“That is what we will continue to have. We will continue to look to work constructively together but there will be things we disagree on,” Trudeau said.
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Appearing slightly exasperated, Xi said, “Let’s create the conditions first,” before smiling and shaking Trudeau’s hand and walking away.
The two leaders held a 10-minute informal meeting on the sidelines of the G20 summit on Tuesday. Canadian media reports claimed that Trudeau raised concerns over alleged Chinese interference in Canada, including the alleged funding of 11 candidates in the 2019 Canadian elections.
“I think it’s important that Canadians in a democracy, that citizens in a democracy, be apprised of the work that leaders are doing on their behalf. And I won’t shy away from being open with Canadians, even as we discuss important and sometimes delicate subjects,” Trudeau told the media after Xi confronted him.
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In another incident at the G20 summit, ABC News producer Molly Nagle said she was grabbed and pushed by a C wearing a white mask with the Chinese flag when she reportedly shouted questions at President Biden asking if he will discuss human rights ahead of his meeting with Xi.
“But I was pulled backwards by my backpack as I shouted by a member of the Chinese group,” Nagle reportedly said in a pool report. “I stumbled back and then was pushed towards the door, knocking me off my balance though I did not fall down.”
According to Nagle, two White House staff members stepped in to tell the man to leave her alone.
Biden reportedly met with Xi on the sidelines of the 2022 G20 Bali summit. On Monday, they discussed “concerns about PRC practices in Xinjiang, Tibet, and Hong Kong, and human rights more broadly,” according to the White House. The issue of Taiwan also came up.
“I absolutely believe there need not be a new Cold War,” Biden said after their meeting. “I’ve met many times with Xi Jinping, and we were candid and clear with one another across the board. And I do not think there’s any imminent attempt on the part of China to invade Taiwan. I made it clear that we want to see cross trade issues peacefully resolved and so it never has to come to that.”
In partnership with other countries, Biden announced a $20 billion plan called the “Just Energy Transition Partnership” at the G20 Summit to move Indonesia away from coal. The U.S and Japan will reportedly assist Indonesia’s energy sector through a “mix of grants, concessional loans, market-rate loans, guarantees, and private investments.”
Featured Image via Annie Bergeron-Oliver
