MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd March, 2019) China firmly opposes the decision by the Canadian authorities to initiate extradition procedures against Huawei's Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou, and views it as political persecution, the Chinese Embassy in Canada said Friday.
The Canadian Department of Justice said earlier in the day that the Canadian authorities had decided to grant authorization to proceed with the extradition process in Meng's case. The British Columbia Supreme Court has scheduled an appearance date for March 6 to confirm the extradition authorization and to set the date for the extradition hearing, the release said.
"The Chinese side is utterly dissatisfied with and firmly opposes the issuance of Authority to Proceed by the Department of Justice Canada on the case of Meng Wanzhou. This is not a merely judicial case, but a political persecution against a Chinese high-tech enterprise," the embassy said in a statement posted on its website.
Meng, the daughter of the founder of Chinese telecoms giant, was arrested in Vancouver on December 1, 2018 at the United States' request, reportedly for failing to comply with US sanctions against Iran. The arrest was decried by Beijing, which demanded that Canadian authorities immediately release the Chinese national.
