Canada repeats call for China to release two citizens

OTTAWA: Canada has repeated calls for China to immediately release two citizens it claims were arbitrarily detained there, soon after the arrest of a highprofile Chinese businesswoman.

The Canadian Government was concerned about the ‘‘worrying precedent’’ the detentions set, Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said yesterday.

Michael Kovrig, a diplomat on leave from his post in Hong Kong, and Michael Spavor, an entrepreneur who helped organise tourist trips to North Korea, were seized nine days after Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou was taken into custody. Meng is out of jail on bail, pending an extradition hearing.

‘‘Canada expects the immediate release of these two Canadians,’’ Freeland said, noting Chinese officials had not pub licly connected the Huawei arrest and the detention of the two citizens.

‘‘My key objective here, and the prime minister’s key objective, is to have Mr Kovrig and Mr Spavor released.’’

The two men were detained in China, Canada’s secondlargest trading partner, shortly after Meng was arrested in Vancouver, British Columbia, at the request of United States authorities, earlier this month.

A third Canadian is being held in China, though Canadian officials have said they see no reason to believe there is a connection to the earlier arrests.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was ‘‘deeply engaged’’ in the issue, as was the rest of the Government, Freeland said.

The Government was working hard on a ‘‘number of fronts’’, including consulting with allies, she said. — Bloomberg News