A briefing note to Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said media reports about Beijing’s interference in Canadian federal elections have taken a very negative tone regarding Ottawa’s approach to the issue, with many urging the government to take concrete action. “The tone was very negative,” said the briefing note titled “Media Analysis – Allegations of Chinese…

Commentary I don’t know how many times I have heard Canadians say that CSIS stands for the “Canadian Secret Intelligence Service.” It does not. The first “s” stand for “security,” and a security intelligence service is different than a foreign intelligence one, although in some countries the mandates overlap (think CIA). Similarly, many are convinced…

Commentary We humans are odd creatures sometimes. When faced with information that is negative we tend to want to avoid it. If someone says “I have good news and I have bad news,” many of us ask to hear the former first, dreading the latter. At the end of the day, however, it is best…

Former public safety minister Bill Blair says that a secret memo prepared by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) to inform the federal government of Beijing’s targeting of Conservative MP Michael Chong never reached him at the time because it was sent to the wrong office. “Just to be very clear, CSIS did not brief me…

Commentary Defending the security and integrity of the Canadian state from external and internal threats is a key federal responsibility. But it seems the federal government has its priorities backward. Ottawa unleashed the Emergencies Act on the fictional premise that  the truckers’ Freedom Convoy protest was an existential threat to Canada’s security. But when it…

The Canadian parliamentary delegation visiting Taiwan met with President Tsai Ing-wen Wednesday, committing to boost unity with the democratic ally and also to learn from its experience in pushing back against foreign interference from communist China. Liberal MP John McKay, who led the ten-member cross-party delegation to Taiwan, expressed gratitude to Tsai for making time…

British Columbia Premier David Eby has asked for a briefing from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), saying he is “very troubled” by reports of Beijing’s alleged interference in Vancouver’s 2022 municipal election. Eby said on March 17 that Canadians deserve a “thorough and independent investigation” into the claims made in a Globe and Mail article…

A former mayor of Vancouver said national intelligence officials came to warn him about Chinese interference before the 2022 municipal election because the information wasn’t getting through to authorities in the “upper level.” Kennedy Stewart told CTV’s Vassy Kapelos that a senior official at the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and one of its China…

Commentary As much as we wish it was otherwise, most problems won’t solve themselves if we ignore them. The odd noise your car is making is likely warning you of a bigger problem to come, and the leaking pipe in the basement won’t seal itself. The same rule applies politically. Canada has a serious issue…

Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s “dismissive” behaviour towards Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the G20 summit is a result of the Liberal government’s failure to treat national security issues seriously, says Conservative Senator Leo Housakos. Other Tory lawmakers are calling for stronger actions to address Beijing’s interference in Canada. At the sidelines of the G20 conference…