BEIJING/TORONTO: China’s ambassador to Ottawa has accused Canada of “double standards” and disregarding his country’s judicial sovereignty, in a diplomatic row sparked by the arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou at the request of the United States.
Beijing denounced Canada’s arrest of Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Huawei Technologies Co. on Dec. 1 on a US extradition warrant, and threatened reprisals unless the case against Meng was dropped.
Days after the arrest, China detained two Canadian citizens — businessman Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig, a former diplomat and an adviser with the International Crisis Group — whom it is investigating for endangering its national security.
In an article in the Ottawa-based Hill Times newspaper on Wednesday, Ambassador Lu Shaye said Canada’s demands for the release of the two men reflected “double standards” born of “Western egotism and white supremacy.”
Lu wrote, “It seems that, to those people, the laws of Canada or other Western countries are laws and must be observed, while China’s laws are not, and shouldn’t be respected.”
A lack of concern in Canada for Meng suggested that humanitarian treatment was only deemed necessary for Canadian citizens, not Chinese people, he added.
China has not drawn a direct link between its detention of the two Canadians and Meng’s arrest, but Beijing-based Western diplomats have called the cases a tit-for-tat reprisal.
While Meng has had full access to lawyers, has been granted bail and is able to see family, Kovrig is being denied legal representation, is not allowed to see family, and is limited to one consular visit a month.
The United States has sought to extradite Meng on charges of misleading multinational banks about Iran-linked transactions, putting the banks at risk of violating US sanctions.
Huawei is the world’s biggest supplier of telecoms network equipment and the second-biggest smartphone seller.
Since at least 2016, the United States has been looking into whether Huawei shipped US-origin products to Iran and other countries in violation of US export and sanctions laws, Reuters reported in April.
China envoy accuses Canada of ‘double standards’ over Huawei arrest
China envoy accuses Canada of ‘double standards’ over Huawei arrest
- Days after the arrest, China detained two Canadian citizens whom it is investigating for endangering its national security
- Huawei is the world’s biggest supplier of telecoms network equipment and the second-biggest smartphone seller
Putin calls for immediate halt to Iran conflict
- Vladimir Putin in constant contact with the leaders of Gulf Cooperation Council member states
MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his condolences to Iran’s president over the numerous civilian casualties resulting from “the armed Israeli-American aggression against Iran” and called for an immediate halt to hostilities, the Kremlin said.
In a phone call late on Friday with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Putin expressed his deep condolences over the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, members of Khamenei’s family, Iranian political and military leaders and “numerous civilians.”
“Vladimir Putin reaffirmed Russia’s principled stance in favor of an immediate cessation of hostilities, the rejection of force as a method to solve any issues surrounding Iran or arising in the Middle East, and a swift return to the path of diplomatic resolution,” the Kremlin said.
Putin said he was in constant contact with the leaders of Gulf Cooperation Council member states.
“Masoud Pezeshkian expressed gratitude for Russia’s solidarity with the Iranian people as they defend their sovereignty and the independence of their country. He also provided a detailed update on the developments during the latest active phase of the conflict,” the Kremlin said.
