NEW DELHI: Canada’s spy service Monday said China and India are likely to try to interfere in the Canadian general elections on April 28, while Russia and Pakistan have the potential to do so, news agency Reuters reported.
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service’s statement comes at a time when Ottawa’s relations with both India and China are tense. Beijing and New Delhi have denied allegations of interference.
An official probe with its report released in January stated that Canada was slow in responding to efforts by China and India to interfere in the 2019 and 2021 elections but their outcomes were unaffected by the meddling.
Vanessa Lloyd, deputy director of operations at CSIS, stated during a press conference that hostile state actors are increasingly using artificial intelligence to interfere in elections. “The PRC (People’s Republic of China) is highly likely to use AI enabled tools to attempt to interfere with Canada’s democratic process in this current election,” she said.
Earlier this month Beijing announced tariffs on more than $2.6 billion worth of Canadian agricultural and food products, retaliating against levies Ottawa slapped on Chinese electric vehicles and steel and aluminum products last year.
Last week, Canada reported that China had executed four Canadian citizens on drug smuggling charges and condemned Beijing’s use of the death penalty.
In a separate incident last year, Canada expelled six Indian diplomats, including the head of mission, over accusations that they were involved in a plot against Sikh separatists within Canada.
Lloyd said, “We have also observed that the government of India has both the intent and the capability to interfere in Canadian communities and democratic processes.”
The Chinese and Indian diplomatic missions in Ottawa could not be reached for comment immediately.
Agencies