The following letter was printed in the Hamilton Spectator

Double standard on China

20 May, 2023

The Spec exhibits a double standard. U.S. interference in Canadian politics is regarded as benign even when it hurts our national interest. Two examples: the infamous letter by U.S. senators Wagner and Rubio of Oct. 18, 2018, advising Justin Trudeau to dump Huawei from Canada’s 5G rollout and the glee expressed by Trump and Bolton duping Trudeau into arresting Meng Wanzhou.

On the other hand, perceived Chinese interference in Canadian politics is regarded as malign, even when it is cloaked in CSIS leaks and unsubstantiated allegations.

Professor McQuaig-Johnston, whom you quoted extensively, hit the right note when she observed that China’s interest in us is based on trade. “Beyond that, they don’t want to have much to do with Canada,” she said.

Canadians should not be stirred by the angry drumbeat of those Canadian parties hostile to China. They have an ulterior motive in demanding royal commissions, foreign influence registries and expulsions of diplomats. That motive is to stir up Sinophobia, undermine decades of mutually beneficial Sino-Canadian relations, create a new cold war, and eventually lead us into a hot war with China over Taiwan.

Ken Stone, Hamilton Coalition To Stop The War