Canada's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has reported that China executed four Canadian citizens earlier this year for drug-related offences, despite several appeals for clemency. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Foreign Minister Melanie Joly stated that she “strongly condemns” the executions and that she and former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had requested compassion in each case. 

Joly did not share more information about the four Canadians, respecting their families' requests for privacy. According to Charlotte MacLeod, Canada's spokesman for global affairs, Ottawa "remains steadfast in its opposition to the use of the death penalty in all cases, everywhere" and will continue to offer the families consular support. Although executions of Westerners in China are uncommon, the four Canadians were also dual Chinese citizens – a status that Beijing does not acknowledge. The Chinese embassy in Ottawa told Canadian media that the four had received a fair trial and due process, following the law strictly.

“China is a rule-of-law country. Whoever violates the law of China must be held accountable in accordance with the law,” the embassy said in a statement published by The Globe and Mail newspaper. “The facts of the crimes committed by the Canadian nationals involved in the cases are clear, and the evidence is solid and sufficient,” added the statement. Amnesty International Canada's English-speaking secretary-general, Ketty Nivyabandi, stated that Canada should take note of the "shocking and inhumane executions of Canadian citizens by Chinese authorities." According to Canadian media, around 100 Canadians are currently being held in China, with many facing drug-related charges. One of the most well-known cases is that of Robert Schellenberg, who was initially sentenced to 15 years in prison in 2014. However, after a retrial in January 2019, his sentence was changed to the death penalty.

The arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Canada in late 2018, at the request of U.S. law enforcement, along with Beijing's detention of two Canadians on espionage charges that same year and accusations of Chinese interference in Canadian elections, has caused a significant decline in relations between China and Canada. This tension now seems to be affecting the trade relationship between the two countries. Earlier this month, Beijing announced tariffs on Canadian agricultural products after Ottawa introduced a 100 percent tax on Chinese-made electric vehicles last year. Former British investigator Peter Humphrey, who supports foreigners imprisoned in China, told The Globe and Mail that it was "absolutely unprecedented" for China to "execute a significant number of foreign citizens" in such a short period of time. “This is really a strong signal that China has no intention of patching things up with Canada,” he said.