Global Times (December 30) reported that CMLink, a subsidiary of China Mobile Canada, announced on
December 28, that, at the request of the Canadian Federal Government, the company will cease its operations
on January 5, 2022. It said users can apply for refunds from the same day. The Global Times described this
as yet another example of the Canadian government’s use of “national security” to suppress Chinese
companies. Radio Free Asia (RFA) Chinese Edition also reported that China Mobile landed in Canada in
2015 and got popular among users who travel frequently between Canada and the China/Hong Kong region.
At the beginning of 2021, the Canadian government began to review China Mobile Canada based on national
security considerations. It issued an order on August 9 instructing the company to divest itself of its parent
company’s shares or terminate its Canadian operations. The company filed in court against the government’s
order. It lost the case. Analysts expressed the belief that China Mobile Canada’s refusal to draw a clear line
with the parent company confirmed the fact that the so-called Chinese overseas subsidiaries can operate
independently is nonsense
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