China Makes Representation to Canada Over G7 Statement on Taiwan

BEIJING (Sputnik) - China has expressed a protest and made a solemn representation to Canada over its involvement in the G7 foreign ministers' statement on Taiwan, the Chinese foreign ministry said on Friday.

On Wednesday, the G7 foreign ministers issued a joint remark, urging China to refrain from any unilateral changes of the status quo in the Taiwan Strait through force and expressing concern over Beijing's "threatening" live-fire exercises for fear that they may cause escalation.

"Deputy Foreign Minister Xie Feng was ordered to summon Jim Nickel, Chargé d'affaires ad interim of the Canadian Embassy in China, to lodge a solemn representation and a strong protest against the erroneous statement issued by the G7 Foreign Ministers on Taiwan," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Xie criticized the G7 nations, with particular emphasis on the United States, which, as he believes, constantly challenges Beijing and encroaches on its national interests.

The ministry noted that current tensions are a product of the US efforts, blaming Washington for repeated provocations. The rest of the G7 group are culpable for turning a blind eye to the US and urging China to exercise restraint instead, the ministry said.

Xie called on Canada to fix its mistakes and retreat from this bloc confrontation.

"We demand [that Canada] give up the misleading rhetoric that led it to interfere in the Taiwan issue, otherwise the Canadian side will be responsible for the result," the diplomat stressed.

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi arrived in Taiwan on Tuesday as part of a congressional delegation's tour of the Asia-Pacific region, brushing aside private warnings from the Biden administration about the risk that her high-profile diplomatic visit could bring. China claims sovereignty over the self-governed island and has repeatedly warned that by pursuing the trip Washington would jeopardize US-China bilateral relations.