(Minghui.org) The G7 summit was held in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada from June 15 to 17, 2025. On June 17, the G7 leaders issued a joint statement condemning transnational repression.

G7 Leaders’ Statement on Transnational Repression

The statement reads, “We, the Leaders of the G7, are deeply concerned by growing reports of transnational repression (TNR). TNR is an aggressive form of foreign interference whereby states or their proxies attempt to intimidate, harass, harm or coerce individuals or communities outside their borders.

“TNR undermines national security, state sovereignty, the safety and human rights of victims, and principles of international law. It has a chilling effect in our countries. TNR often impacts dissidents, journalists, human rights defenders, religious minorities, and those identified as part of diaspora communities.

“We condemn all acts of TNR including but not limited to those involving:

• Threats or acts of physical violence such as harassment, assault, abduction or assassination;• Misuse of cooperation with other foreign states, international bodies and intergovernmental organizations, in order to detain, forcibly return, or repress targets, such as leveraging extraterritorial law application and counterterrorism and investigative tools;• Forced return by confiscating passports, invalidating documents, or denying consular services;• Digital transnational repression, such as doxing and sexualized smear campaigns particularly targeting women, to induce compliance, silence, threaten, discredit, or retaliate;• Misuse of spyware and cyber tools to engage in surveillance, and to enable physical targeting and tracking, hacking, or cyber harassment; and• Direct or implicit threats against family members.”

The G7 leaders are also concerned about, “threats by foreign states and their proxies to our citizens outside our borders, such as arbitrary detention. We recognize the important role played by all partners, including civil society, academia and the private sector, in countering this threat. We welcome the recommendations for action emanating from the G7 multistakeholder Dialogue on Transnational Repression, hosted in Ottawa in February 2025, to develop concrete strategies for protecting those who are targeted.”

The G7 leaders, “commit to foster a common understanding of TNR, raise awareness, and promote accountability to increase the costs for those who engage in acts of TNR.” They put forward the following strategies:

• Build global understanding of the threat and its corrosive impact, including on human rights and democracy; this includes reporting on TNR as an important vector of foreign interference in G7 Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM) public reports, and strengthening engagement with likeminded partners and engaging more broadly in relevant multilateral fora.

• Develop a TNR Resilience and Response Framework that includes: measures to boost G7 cooperation to counter TNR; a compendium of operational, diplomatic, policy, legislative, and community engagement best practices; and information sharing around the latest techniques, trends and vectors of TNR observed globally, drawing on wider initiatives such as the Pall Mall process related to cyber intrusion capabilities.

• Launch a Digital TNR Detection Academy through the G7 RRM to build collective capacity to detect TNR online; the Academy will provide G7 and partners with the technical skills and tools for identifying and responding to the latest technology-enabled threats.

• Support those who may be targets of TNR as well as members of civil society who are actively working to counter the threat, including through initiatives like the Canada-UK Common Good Cyber Fund, and by acting in solidarity with other states affected by TNR.

“We will redouble our efforts to keep our communities safe, to defend human rights, including the freedom of expression online and offline, and to safeguard our sovereignty.”

G7 Multistakeholder Dialogue on Transnational Repression

The G7 multistakeholder Dialogue on Transnational Repression was hosted in Ottawa in February 2025. The dialogue brought together representatives from governments, civil society, technology companies, and international organizations to propose specific actions to address authoritarian regimes’ harassment, surveillance, and threats against dissidents overseas. Based on currently available information, the following is a summary of the main recommendations.

1. Strengthen international cooperation and intelligence sharing: Establish a transnational mechanism to help identify and track transnational repression and promote law enforcement and diplomatic coordination.

2. Protect victims and exile communities: Provide asylum, legal support and mental health resources, and strengthen community safety.

3. Regulate the abuse of technology platforms and digital tools: Call on companies to take measures to prevent their products from being used to monitor or harass dissidents and increase transparency.

4. Strengthen legal and policy frameworks: Encourage countries to enact or update laws to explicitly prohibit and punish transnational repression, including the use of red notices, spyware and other means.

5. Support civil society and advocacy: Fund research, advocacy and education activities to enhance public awareness and resistance to transnational repression.

This dialogue also echoes the G7 RRM and the Pall Mall Process, demonstrating the G7’s determination to safeguard human rights and democratic values in the digital age.

The Pall Mall Process is an international initiative jointly launched by the UK and France in 2024. Its core objectives include: establishing international codes of conduct; preventing human rights violations and transnational repression (with particular attention to authoritarian regimes using these tools to monitor dissidents, journalists and exile communities); promoting transparency and accountability; and strengthening multilateral cooperation.

China’s Transnational Repression Is the Largest and Most Complex

According to a report published by Article 19, a British international freedom of expression organization, “Going Global: China’s Transnational Repression of Protesters Worldwide,” the report investigated how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) launched a systematic transnational repression against protesters abroad and critics of their human rights record, and pointed out that the CCP’s transnational repression is the most complex and largest organized repression in the world.

The Washington DC-based The Diplomat magazine pointed out in a long report on February 24 that the CCP strengthened its control over the media and used lawfare to suppress dissidents, especially the transnational repression of the Falun Gong group.

Since the beginning of last year, the CCP has used the US media and judiciary system to launch a systematic attack on Shen Yun and Falun Gong, and made death threats including bombs threats and shootings during Shen Yun’s global tour.