At a time when Canada’s federal government is engaged in a full-court press to demand the release of two Canadian detainees in China, the premier of Nova Scotia appears to be prioritizing his province’s economic interests over the federal foreign minister’s pleas to raise the issue with Chinese officials.
Liberal Premier Stephen McNeil did not raise the consular cases at a meeting with Chinese ambassador Lu Shaye in Halifax on Wednesday, the premier’s spokesman told the National Post, despite Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland’s office asking him to use the rare face time with Chinese officials to do just that.
“Global Affairs Canada and the minister’s office have spoken with and briefed elected Canadian officials visiting China, including the office of Premier McNeil, to underscore how important these cases are and the importance of raising them with the Chinese,” Freeland’s press secretary Adam Austen said.
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