Two Canadians held in China over national security concerns amid Huawei row
China’s foreign ministry today confirmed it has detained two Canadian nationals on suspicion of endangering national security.
Businessman Michael Spavor and former diplomat Michael Kovrig were arrested on Monday, spokesman Lu Kang said today, according to Reuters.
Kang said the two Canadians were being investigated on suspicion of harming China’s national security, and said the Canadian embassy had been informed.
“The legal rights and interests of these two Canadians have been safeguarded,” Lu told reporters. “These two cases are in the process of being investigated separately.”
The arrests have been widely interpreted as retaliation for the detention of Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou in Canada on 1 December.
Wanzhou, who is the daughter of the company’s founder, is accused of misleading banks about transactions linked to an Iranian company, putting them at risk of violation US sanctions.
The Chinese executive was granted bail yesterday, but remains in Canada awaiting possible extradition.
Spavor, one of the arrested Canadians, has longstanding links with North Korea. He is one of the few Westerners to have met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, and helped organise a trip to the company for former basketball player Dennis Rodman.
Kovrig is also linked with North Korea through his work for think tank the International Crisis Group (ICG).
Chinese officials have not said whether the arrests are connected to North Korea or Wanzhou’s detention.