- Nadine Yousif
- By BBC reporter from Toronto
image source,Getty Images
Since 2022, the Canadian military has thwarted several surveillance attempts on Canadian territory, the Canadian Defense Department said.
The Canadian military has confirmed that it recently discovered evidence of Chinese surveillance in the Arctic.
The news, first reported by Canada’s The Globe and Mail, raised questions about China’s activities in the Arctic.
Earlier, a suspected Chinese spy balloon floated in Canadian and US airspace before it was shot down by the US military.
China has also recently been accused of interfering in Canadian elections.
The Canadian military’s Operation Limpid found and recovered the surveillance buoy last fall. It’s an ongoing mission by the Canadian military to identify threats to national security by monitoring the air, land and sea.
Canadian Defense Department spokesman Daniel Le Bouthillier said in a statement that the military is “fully aware of recent Chinese efforts to conduct surveillance operations in Canadian airspace and at sea.”
Leboutillier added that China uses reconnaissance equipment that is dual-purpose, both for research and for military purposes.
Since 2022, the military has blocked outside attempts to spy on Canadian territory, he said, without elaborating on their nature.
China has long shown an interest in the Arctic. It has sent high-level figures to the region 33 times over the past 20 years and is involved with most major Arctic agencies.
China has also expanded its icebreaking fleet and sent naval vessels to the north, often on scientific research expeditions.
As climate change melts the ice caps, China hopes to open a shorter trade route to Europe through the region and gain access to emerging resources.
image source,Getty Images
China has long shown an interest in the Arctic. In 2021, China sent an icebreaker to conduct a five-month scientific research expedition in the area.
But experts say the attempt to spy on military assets in the Arctic has also doubled China’s research interest in the region.
Their efforts are linked to a larger drive by several Arctic nations — namely, the United States, Canada, Finland, Russia, Norway and Sweden — to unlock the untapped potential of the region.
“The world in this place has not been mapped and understood like it has been done in other latitudes,” said Roberto Mazzolin, a senior fellow at the Center for International Governance Innovation and a former senior officer in the Canadian Armed Forces.
Mazolin said Canada has historically viewed the Arctic as a safe area with few potential threats. But Russian and, more recently, Chinese interest in the region has changed that.
“[Canada is forced to]look at how we deploy our own security, our military defense or our economic development activities to ensure Canadian and American interests,” he said.
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly told CNN on Wednesday that she sees China as an increasingly disruptive force.
Joly added that Canada is working closely with the United States to protect North American airspace as well as Canada’s Arctic sovereignty.
Before the Canadian military discovered the Chinese buoys, Canadian intelligence revealed that China had tried to interfere in Canada’s last federal election in 2021.
In documents first reported by Canada’s Globe and Mail, Canada’s security intelligence service says China wants Justin Trudeau’s Liberals to be re-elected as a minority party, securing a victory over Conservative candidates seen as unfriendly to China .
The report also mentioned that China has done this by donating money to specific candidates, spreading false information, and using consulates and hiring students as volunteers to help some Liberal Party candidates.
Canadian lawmakers are investigating allegations that China interfered in Canada’s 2019 federal election. On Tuesday, the probe expanded to include whether China tried to influence Canada’s 2021 election.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called China’s suspected election meddling “a very serious problem” on Wednesday and said he supported further investigations into the reports.
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Intervention efforts so far appear to have been unsuccessful, but still raise concerns about foreign attempts to interfere in Canada’s democratic process, he added.
“Foreign powers are trying to undermine people’s faith in democracy itself,” Trudeau said.
Chinese officials in Canada denied the reports, saying China had “never interfered in any way in any election or internal affairs of Canada.”
Suspicious Chinese surveillance activities in North America dominated local headlines earlier this month after Chinese balloons were spotted flying over the country.
Both the U.S. and Canada say the balloon is monitoring sensitive military assets. China, however, denied the balloon was being used for surveillance and said it was a “civilian weather airship” that had strayed off course.