Canada's main spy agency has accused India and Pakistan of trying to interfere in the country's last two general elections.
The report, released last week, was filed as part of a federal commission investigating interference by foreign countries, including China and Russia, in the 2019 and 2021 national votes.
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) said the Indian government attempted to interfere in the 2019 and 2021 elections using “covert operations” targeting specific constituencies and elected politicians in the country. Ta.
In a separate document, CSIS accused Islamabad of secretly trying to influence politics at the federal level before the 2019 elections to advance Pakistan's interests.
Governments rarely level suspicions against other sovereign nations, and Canada has traditionally considered both India and Pakistan to be partners. But the accusations were leveled amid rising tensions between Canada and India and widespread concerns in Canada that foreign powers were trying to sway the outcome of the election.
Here are the details of what CSIS claimed and its implications:
What are the allegations against India?
According to a CSIS document seen by Al Jazeera, Indian government “agents” were sent in 2019 to “align Canada's position with India's interests on key issues, particularly regarding the conduct of the Gol Party's elections.” and attempted to influence the 2021 election. [government of India] It supports an independent homeland for Sikhs based in Canada, which they call Khalistan. ”
According to the CSIS report, this was done “secretly by various Canadian politicians to ensure the election of pro-Goll candidates or as a means of gaining influence over candidates who took office.” “by providing illegal financial support.”
“In some cases, candidates may have no idea that their campaign was receiving illegal funds,” the report said.
According to the document, India's influence efforts focused on “minority constituencies” that are home to Indo-Canadian communities that New Delhi views as supporting the Khalistan separatist cause.
CSIS alleges that India knowingly relies on “Canada and Canada-based agents and contacts within their networks” for its operations, which includes influence operations in New Delhi and Canada. He argued that this was to “obscure the explicit connection” between the two.
“The agents communicate with and cooperate with Indian intelligence officials in India and Canada, and receive explicit and implicit instructions from them,” the report said.
How did India react?
When reports first emerged in February suggesting Canada was investigating Indian election interference, New Delhi reacted immediately, calling the allegations “baseless.”
India's Ministry of External Affairs said: “It is not the policy of the Government of India to interfere in the democratic processes of other countries.”
“In fact, quite the contrary, it is Canada who is interfering in our internal affairs. We have raised this issue with them regularly. We continue to call for effective measures to be taken to address this.”
Relations between India and Canada began last year when Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused the Indian government of involvement in the murder of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was shot dead near Vancouver in June. I received a blow for criticizing it.
Reeta Tremblay, a political scientist and professor emeritus at the university, said this is especially true as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi prepares for a referendum that begins this month and could return him to power for a third time. , said the latest allegations are likely to only further complicate their relationship. University of Victoria.
Tremblay said that while strained relations are in neither Ottawa's nor New Delhi's interests, “territorial integrity and diasporic Khalistan separatism are core issues for India, and it is Canada that stands in the way.'' '', the Indian Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar said. In India's domestic politics, the opposite is true. ”
According to the 2021 Census, Canada is home to 1.4 million people of Indian ethical or cultural origin.
What are the allegations against Pakistan?
CSIS said Pakistan's foreign intervention in Canada was “primarily to promote Pakistan's political, security and economic stability and counter India's growing influence globally.”
According to the assessment, Islamabad was a “limited foreign interfering actor” in the 2019 and 2021 elections.
“Pakistan's foreign interference activities abroad are influenced by the country's turbulent political, economic, and security situation, as well as long-standing tensions with neighboring India,” the report said.
The brief said that Pakistan's past meddling efforts included efforts to “covertly influence the election and increase support for politicians and candidates deemed more pro-Pakistan or anti-India.” Stated.
Pakistan has yet to respond to CSIS's claims.
Tremblay said unlike India, he does not expect the allegations to have a major impact on Canada-Pakistan relations. “While Canada and Pakistan enjoy good but limited economic relations, Canada does not hesitate to refer to the recent Pakistani elections and condemn the electoral violence and attacks on democracy,” she said. “There is,” she said.
At the same time, the CSIS allegations could undermine Pakistan's ability to portray India as guilty of foreign influence operations, without also drawing attention to Islamabad, and undermining New Delhi's claims about Pakistan's support for the Khalistan cause. Tremblay said it could be strengthened.
China's interference in Canadian elections
A large part of the ongoing investigation is estimating the role and scope of the Chinese government's alleged influence in influencing recent Canadian elections.
According to an official investigation, Canada's foreign intelligence agency concluded that China interfered in the past two elections.
Prime Minister Trudeau's Liberal Party won elections in 2019 and 2021.
“We believe that China [Peoples’ Republic of China] “Secretly and deceptively interfered in both the 2019 and 2021 elections,” CSIS said.
“In both cases, these FIs [foreign interference] The activities were pragmatic in nature and focused primarily on assisting those deemed “pro-China” or “neutral” on issues of interest to the Chinese government. ”
China denies interfering in Canadian politics.
CSIS said non-state actors were able to carry out foreign interference with “little legal or political repercussions.”
“Foreign interference therefore has low risks and high rewards,” the CSIS assessment states.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has been accused of not doing enough to combat foreign interference in Canada's elections and is scheduled to testify as part of the inquiry on Wednesday.
“We've known for many years that a number of countries have an interest in engaging with, sometimes influencing, sometimes interfering with Canadian institutions,” he told reporters Friday.
“I can assure people that we will continue to take all necessary steps to prevent interference from any country.”
Relations between China and Canada have been tense in recent years, particularly after Canadian authorities detained Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou on a U.S. arrest warrant in 2018.
What does all this mean for Canada?
Tremblay said the reports suggest Canada needs to better coordinate key institutions such as CSIS, the Royal Mounted Police, the bureaucracy and election authorities.
They also need to “manage their diaspora better and understand the vulnerabilities of this community with family ties back home,” she said. By 2041, half of Canada's population is expected to be made up of immigrants or children of immigrants.
