Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday called on the US not to sign a trade deal with China unless Beijing agrees to release two Canadians detained since last year.
Former diplomat Michael Kovrig and businessman Michael Spavor have been held in China’s opaque legal system since they were apprehended on Dec. 10 last year, accused of espionage.
Their case is widely viewed by Canadians as retribution for the arrest of Huawei Technologies Co Ltd (華為) chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou (孟晚舟) in Vancouver just nine days prior. She is wanted in the US on charges related to Iran sanctions violations.
Obtaining the two men’s release has been a top priority of Trudeau’s government.
When asked if he thought a US-China trade deal could help resolve the situation during an interview with French-language channel TVA, Trudeau said: “We hope so.”
“We told them that the United States must not sign a final and complete deal with China that does not solve the problem of Meng Wanzhou and the two Canadians,” he said.
Trudeau, who has been criticized by the opposition for his handling of the case, also said his administration has worked “practically every day to try and make China understand that they must free these two Canadians.”
Meng was released on bail a few days after her arrest. She is living in her Vancouver mansion while waiting for an extradition hearing scheduled to begin on Jan. 20.
“Whatever pressure they put on us, arresting two Canadians ... won’t change the Court of British Columbia’s decision on extradition,” Trudeau said, adding that the Canadian judicial system is “independent.”
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