BEIJING – China on Monday denied that two Canadian citizens detained for nearly two years were arrested “arbitrarily” in reaction to the arrest of an executive of generation giant Huawei in Canada.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian’s refusal came here days after China granted consular access to Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor for the first time since January. The Chinese authorities “of the two men and called for their prompt release.
Zhao stated that China “strongly opposes Canada’s misrepresentations” and reiterated its statement that Kovrig and Spavor were “suspected of activities that jeopardize China’s national security”.
“Chinese judicial bodies deal with the case independently in accordance with the law. Therefore, the arbitrary detention label cannot be placed on the Chinese side,” he told reporters in a daily briefing.
Canadian attempts to recruit other countries to pressure China are “completely useless and will only be counterproductive,” Zhao said. On Saturday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and US President Donald Trump discussed Kovrig and Spavor’s cases in a phone call and Trudeau expressed his thanks to the United States.
Despite its disapproval of any link, Beijing has linked the arrests to the arrest of Meng Wanzhou, Huawei’s leading monetary officer and daughter of the company’s founder. The United States seeks its extradition for fraud and the case is in Canadian court.
“What Canada did in the case of arbitrary detention of Meng Wanzhou,” Zhao said.
Bilateral relations have resented as China demands more of Canada to release Meng, who was arrested on a stopover in Vancouver in December 2018 and has lately lived in one of its city’s mansions while fighting extradition.
Kovrig, a former diplomatic, and Spavor, a contractor, were arrested a few days later, none of whom had received consular visits amid the coronavirus pandemic.
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