Canadian PM Trudeau says China using detentions to advance political goals

China has denied that the detentions of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig are not connected to the arrest of Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei’s CFO Meng Wanzhou.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau strongly reacted to China’s “arbitrary” imprisonment of two Canadian citizens, including a former diplomat accusing the nation of using these detentions to advance its “political goals.”

People hold signs calling for China to release Canadian detainees Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig during an extradition hearing for Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou at the B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (REUTERS)

China has denied that the detentions of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig are not connected to the arrest of Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei’s CFO Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver in December 2018. Analysts have continued to accuse China of using the detentions as a lever to try and get her freed.

Meng, daughter of Huawei’s founder Ren Zhengfei, is facing a trial that may culminate in her extradition to the United States, in a case related to defrauding a bank to illegally conduct business with the Iranian regime.

Ren Zhengfei, is facing a trial that may culminate in her extradition to the United States, in a case related to defrauding a bank to illegally conduct business with the Iranian regime.

While Trudeau did not react to a query related to ‘hostage diplomacy’ during the daily media briefing, he was far more direct than in the past in confronting China, as he said, “It has been obvious since the beginning this was a political decision by the Chinese government, and we deplore it.”

He stressed that China had made those “links” between the Meng case and those involving the two Canadians, who were charged with spying last week by Chinese prosecutors, and “continue to put political pressure on Canada” by connecting them. He asserted that the “use of arbitrary detentions as a means to advance political goals is fully unacceptable in a world based on rules.”

How the escalation of friction between Ottawa and Beijing has become a major political matter in Canada and has featured prominently in Trudeau’s interaction with other world leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It figured in his discussions on Monday with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. A statement from the Canadian PMO noted, “Prime Minister Trudeau thanked President von der Leyen for the European Union’s expressions of concern for two Canadians who have been arbitrarily detained in China.”