Peter Mattis, president of U.S.-based think tank The Jamestown Foundation, speaks during an interview on “American Thought Leaders,” hosted by Jan Jekielek, a senior editor at The Epoch Times, on April 20, 2026. The Epoch Times
As a NATO member and U.S. ally, Canada is a natural target for Beijing’s overseas influence operations, according to Peter Mattis, China expert and president of the U.S.-based think tank The Jamestown Foundation.
However, Canada is particularly vulnerable, Matti says, as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) views it as an easy target for several reasons.
One factor is a lack of strong controls against CCP interference in Canada, Mattis said in an interview with Jan Jekielek, senior editor and host of The Epoch Times’ “American Thought Leaders.”
The CCP’s influence operations have faced “less pushback” in Canada over the last two or three decades, Mattis said, noting that the last “really public, visible pushback” against interference from Beijing was Project Sidewinder in the 1990s.
