Justin Trudeau cautious on issue of foreign interference at G7 summit | Public inquiry into foreign interference

It was a quiet and cautious Justin Trudeau who presented himself to the media at the closing of the G7 summit which took place on Italian soil this year. Asked several times about foreign interference, the Prime Minister repeated that he relies on the work of Judge Hogue’s commission of inquiry.

Mr. Trudeau has been asked several times whether elected officials from his caucus have collaborated, voluntarily or not, with foreign elected officials. He was also called upon to react to the statements of MP Elizabeth May and especially that of the leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP), Jagmeet Singh, who accused parliamentarians of “treachery” following his reading of Judge Hogue’s report on interference.

The Canadian Prime Minister simply replied that he was going to let the MPs speak for themselves and stated take the issue very seriously.

I think it’s important that people can have confidence in our ability to counter foreign interference. This is why we are working with the Commission on Foreign Interference to see how they can follow up on the report of the committee of parliamentarians.

In English, he again questioned the way the committee of elected officials interpreted the information.

CPSNR has reached its conclusions; I think it’s an important part of the process”,”text”:”We have made clear some of our concerns about how the CPSNR reached its conclusions; I think it’s an important part of the process”}}”>We have clearly expressed some of our concerns about how the CPSNR drew its conclusions; I think it’s an important part of the process.did he declare.

Leaders of other G7 countries have also expressed great concern about foreign interference and are considering creating a collective response framework to counter foreign threats against democracies.

Trudeau-Modi meeting

Mr. Trudeau, however, did not hide having had meetings with the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, who has just been reappointed at the head of the most populous democracy in the world for a third term.

Refusing to go into the details of their conversation, Mr. Trudeau insisted on collaboration and the importance of engagement between the two countries, although India is targeted as one of the main countries responsible for foreign interference in Canada by the Commission’s report on the subject.

He simply said that they discussed big issues and that it is important for both countries to engage. It was also the first physical meeting between the two heads of state since Mr. Trudeau accused Mr. Modi’s government of being involved in the murder of a Sikh activist, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in British Columbia.

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Justin Trudeau leaves Italy on Saturday for Switzerland, where Canada is taking part in the Ukraine Peace Conference.

We will all do everything we can to end this war, which Russia can end tomorrow if it decides to respect international law and withdraws from Ukrainian territorydeclared the Canadian Prime Minister.

Other files

In addition to foreign interference and the war in Ukraine, the war in Gaza, artificial intelligence and gender equality are among the issues that were also discussed by representatives of G7 member countries present at the summit and found in their final statement.

Although no promises were made regarding the war between Hamas and Israel, members approved the ceasefire agreement presented by US President Joe Biden.

Also, they collectively call for more humanitarian aid to be delivered to civilians in Gaza and invite Hamas to accept the ceasefire proposal. Justin Trudeau recalled that Canada wants a fair and lasting peace in the Middle East, in particular through the establishment of a two-state solution.

The issue of artificial intelligence was also addressed by members of the G7 as well as by Pope Francis, who this weekend was the first pontiff to address the organization’s leaders directly at a summit. .

He calls on politicians to ensure that artificial intelligence remains human-centered and emphasizes the importance of humans continuing to make choices for themselves. The G7 also agreed to implement a plan on the use ofAI in the world of work and better support the implementation of the International Code of Conduct for organizations developing systems ofAI advances.

Gender equality is also a topic that has captured the attention of G7 leaders. Media reported that Italian negotiators succeeded in removing the word abortion from an earlier version of the final declaration.

Instead, it includes a commitment to quality health care for women, including comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rightsas well as a commitment to unblock at least $20 billion over three years to strengthen women’s empowerment.

During the last G7 summit in 2023 in Japan, Giorgia Meloni rejected criticism from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about the deterioration of the rights of members of the community LGBTQ+ in Italy. This question had annoyed the Italian Prime Minister, who had claimed to be victim of fake news and of propagandaarguing that Mr. Trudeau’s perception does not correspond to reality.

With information from Louis Blouin and The Canadian Press