Canadians detained by Chinese
BEIJING/TORONTO: China’s foreign ministry said yesterday two Canadian nationals detained in China were suspected of engaging in activities endangering national security, and both cases were under investigation.
Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told reporters the legitimate rights and interests of the two Canadians had been safeguarded.
Canadian businessman Michael Spavor, as well as former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig, who works for the International Crisis Group, were detained this week in what appears to be retaliation for Canada’s arrest of a top executive of telecommunications giant Huawei.
The possible arrest raises the stakes in an international dispute that threatens relations.
Canada’s Global Affairs department earlier said Spavor, an entrepreneur who is one of the few Westerners to have met North Korean leader Kim Jongun, had gone missing in China.
‘‘We have been unable to make contact [with Spavor] since he let us know he was being questioned by Chinese authorities,’’ Global Affairs spokesman Guillaume Berube said.
Spavor is a fluent Korean speaker with longstanding ties to the North through his company, Paektu Cultural Exchange.
He was instrumental in bringing NBA player Dennis Rodman to Pyongyang in 2013 and has organised tours and joint cultural projects with the North.
At the root of the dispute is Canada’s recent arrest of Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei, for possible extradition to the United States.
A Canadian court on Wednesday released Meng on bail, confining her to Vancouver and its suburbs while she awaits possible extradition. The US accuses Huawei of using a Hong Kong shell company to do business with Iran in violation of US sanctions.
The US and China have taken pains this week to emphasise their trade talks are entirely separate from the US case against the top Chinese technology executive.
But with a few words, President Donald Trump obliterated the distinction on Wednesday, saying he would wade into the case if it would help produce a trade agreement with China.
The comment suggests Meng could be a political pawn in negotiations and makes things more awkward for Canada, which arrested her on behalf of the US on December 1 at Vancouver airport.
Canada has asked China for extra security at its embassy because of protests and antiCanadian sentiment and has advised foreign service staff to take precautions, a senior Canadian official told reporters. —AP