O'Toole calls Chinese ambassador's comments a 'thinly veiled threat'

Conservative Party Leader Erin O'Toole issued a statement on remarks made by the Chinese Ambassador regarding Honk Kongers fleeing to Canada. The comments, which were seen as a veiled threat to many including the prime minister, sparked a response from all sides of aisle.

In a statement, O'Toole called the Chinese Ambassador's comments a "barely veiled threat to the 300,000 Canadians in Hong Kong."

"It was of the kind of tone and tenor one would expect from someone seeking protection money—not someone who is the official emissary of a member of the United Nations Security Council," wrote O'Toole.

"A threat to Canadians anywhere, is a threat to Canadians everywhere."

"Conservatives are therefore calling on the Ambassador to fully retract his remarks and issue a public apology.  Should the Ambassador fail to do so expeditiously, we expect the government to withdraw his credentials," wrote the Conservative leader.

O'Toole also called on the Trudeau Liberals to:

1. Put in place a clear, expedited path for pro-democracy protestors and political refugees fleeing Hong Kong for Canada, to make it clear that only the Canadian government will determine who does and does not get admitted to this country.
2. Impose Magnitsky sanctions against those responsible for imposing a draconian national security law in violation of the Sino-British Joint Declaration, an international treaty.

"Canada is a smaller country on an economic basis when compared to China, but our commitment to liberty, human rights, and the rule of law towers above the conduct of this Ambassador," concluded O'Toole.