Justin Trudeau and Xi Jinping had quite the frosty encounter on Wednesday, in front of the Canadian Pool camera.
The two leaders were meeting with their other G20 counterparts in Bali for this week’s summit amid high hopes that the West could repair its fraying relationship with China.
But, in an unlikely turn of events, the two were seen having a less than amicable exchange about “media leaks” – the kind of conversation which leaders usually keep to behind closed doors.
Xi, in particular, has a highly cultivated media image.
After the Chinese president spoke in Mandarin, Xi’s translator told the Canadian prime minister: “Everything we’ve discussed has been leaked to the papers, that’s not appropriate.
″And that’s not the way the conversation was conducted.
″If there is insincerity on your part...”
According to Reuters, Xi’s complete sentence was: “If there is sincerity, we can communicate well with mutual respect, otherwise the outcome will not be easy to tell.”
But, Trudeau cut in before the translator finished: “In Canada we believe in free and open and frank dialogue, which you will continue to have.
″We can work constructively together by there will be things that we will continue to disagree on.”
“That’s great – conditions first,” the translator said, before Xi smiled, shook Trudeau’s hand and walking off.
The camera followed the Canadian PM as he walked away, marching very quickly out of the main room without looking at the reporters.
It’s thought Xi was referring to reports that Trudeau had brought up “serious concerns” about potential Chinese “interference” in Canadian elections when speaking during their first talks in three years on Tuesday.
This was just a 10-minute informal meeting on the sides of the G20 summit, according to Reuters.
This frosty exchange comes after Xi and US president Joe Biden used the summit as a chance to meet for the first time since the White House changed hands, it seemed they had reached a new cordial level.
Both men posed smiling for photos, and had a three hour conversation behind the scenes about their differing views.
Beijing’s refusal to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, its own budding nuclear arsenal and Western fears that it is on the cusp of invading Taiwan have stretched tensions further recently.
The Chinese foreign ministry and the state media have not published anything on these conversations.
Trudeau did confirm the conversation later, although the Canadian government never released a readout from the meeting.
Xi has been part of nine formal bilateral meetings with other heads of state at G20, according to China’s foreign ministry website.
He was meant to meet with UK prime minister Rishi Sunak, but it was called off after a missile unexpectedly hit the Ukraine-Polish border.