CHINA RATTLES
Give us back busted tech exec, they howl
his meeting with Xi.
Huawei has been of interest to the U.S. and other countries over concerns about spying on competitors and other issues.
In April, The Journal first reported that the Justice Department was investigating whether Huawei violated sanctions against Iran. Lawmakers and experts have also raised concerns that the company could be using their technology to spy on Americans.
China's Ministry of Commerce has signaled that Beijing would rather avoid disrupting the recent progress on trade talks and is confident they can reach a deal during the 90 days that Trump agreed to suspend U.S. tariff hikes, said spokesman Gao Feng.
Trump has already instituted tariff hikes on Chinese imports stemming from complaints that Beijing steals or pressures American companies to reveal tech secrets if they want to sell goods in China. statement said Meng broke no U.S. or Canadian laws and demanded Canada “immediately correct the mistake.”
China called on Washington and Ottawa to explain the reason for the tech executive's arrest, a Foreign Ministry spokesman, Geng Shuang, told The Associated Press.
The arrest came on the same day that President Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping and the pair agreed to work on easing their escalating trade dispute.
Trump rattled markets Tuesday by tweeting that he's “a Tariff Man.”
“When people or countries come in to raid the great wealth of our Nation, I want them to pay for doing so,” he added.
National security adviser John Bolton said Thursday he “knew in advance” from the Justice Department that Meng would be arrested — but didn't say whether Trump was aware ahead of
Meng, the daughter of the company's founder, Ren Zhengfei, was arrested in Vancouver on Dec. 1, and a bail hearing is scheduled for Friday, according to Canadian authorities.
A Huawei spokesman told The Globe and Mail in Canada that Meng was detained on behalf of the U.S. while she was transferring flights. The company said she faces unspecified charges in the Eastern District of New York. The Department of Justice did not comment.
“The company has been provided with very little information regarding the charges and is not aware of any wrongdoing by Ms. Meng,” Huawei said. “The company believes the Canadian and U.S. legal systems will ultimately reach a just conclusion.”
In April, The Wall Street Journal first reported that the Justice Department was investigating whether Huawei violated sanctions against Iran.
A Chinese government The mysterious arrest of a well-connected Chinese tech executive in Canada sent shockwaves through global markets Thursday and complicated already tense trade negotiations between the U.S. and China.
Officials in Beijing called on their Canadian counterparts to release Meng Wanzhou, chief financial officer of Huawei Technologies, the world's largest maker of telecommunications network equipment and the No. 3 smartphone supplier, as she faces possible extradition to the United States.
Spooked investors fearing an all-out trade war sent the Dow Jones plummeting more than 750 points Thursday morning before markets stabilized and the index lost less than 80 points for the day, closing at 24,948. Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 2.5% and the DAX in Germany sank 1.8%.