Canada–China relations, or Sino-Canadian relations, officially dates back to 1942, when Canada sent an ambassador to China. Before then, Canada had been represented by the British ambassador. The Communist victory (1949) in the Chinese Civil War caused a break in relations that lasted until 1970, when Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau became one of the first Western leaders to recognize the People's Republic of China. Since 1997, Hong Kong has been an official part of China, and relations have been aggravated of late by the tensions between the Communist Party of China and the protestors in that city.