The federal government plans to warn foreign ambassadors not to interfere in the next elections

The federal government plans to convene a meeting of foreign ambassadors next month to warn them not to interfere in the next elections.

Testifying before the inquiry into foreign interference in Canada, Deputy Foreign Minister David Morrison said his department is preparing for the next federal election and wants to make sure diplomats from other countries know where Canada draws the line between efforts to influence and tries to intervene.

“I think that with foreign missions here in town and their consulates across the country, we must and will be crystal clear about what we consider acceptable diplomatic activity and where exactly we draw the line,” Morrison told the inquiry.

While a diplomat’s job is to influence people, Morrison says, he crosses the line into interference when the influence is coercive, clandestine or covert.

Morrison also told the inquiry that AI-powered foreign interference is “a major threat vector” that he expects to see emerge in the next election.

Morrison said the problem of foreign interference targeting Canada is growing, but still pales in comparison to what was seen during the Brexit referendum and French elections, and to the disinformation surrounding the current US election.

MPs should be given more information about how foreign diplomats operate and how to spot when diplomatic behavior crosses the line, Morrison said.

He said that when he was appointed acting national security adviser, he was asked to brief ministers after the 2021 elections and warn them that attempts by foreign countries to attack them through diplomatic missions could increase.

Friday’s testimony also sheds new light on some cases of foreign interference that have occurred in Canada in recent years.

In 2023, Canada declared Chinese diplomat Zhao Wei persona non grata after a media report that he targeted Conservative MP Michael Chong. In the days following the report, Global Affairs received new information from CSIS dating back to 2021 about foreign interference activities by Zhao.

While the move was largely seen at the time as a response to media reports that Chong had been targeted, Morrison said the department had been discussing for months about declaring a Chinese diplomat – not necessarily Zhao – persona non grata.

He said the media report provided an opportunity to send a message to China and other countries engaged in foreign interference in Canada.

In response to a question about Chinese interest in the Canadian Arctic, GAC Assistant Deputy Minister Alexandre Lévêque said the region is now a stage for geopolitical competition. Global Affairs is conducting a review of Canada’s Arctic policy, which will be made public soon.

The foreign interference investigation, led by Judge Marie-Josée Hogue, was launched following media reports accusing China of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections.

In her first report, made public in May, Hogue found that while it was possible that foreign interference occurred at a small number of demonstrations, she concluded that this had no impact on the overall election results.

On Monday, the inquiry is expected to be heard by officials from the Canadian Heritage Department and security and intelligence officials from the Privy Council.