Canada will continue to engage with allies to push for the release of two Canadians detained on espionage charges in China, Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois-Philippe Champagne said in a statement on Friday
TORONTO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th June, 2020) Canada will continue to engage with allies to push for the release of two Canadians detained on espionage charges in China, Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois-Philippe Champagne said in a statement on Friday.
Earlier in the day, prosecutors in Beijing and Dandong formally charged the two Canadians, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, with identical spying charges, respectively, the local prosecutor's offices in both cities said in separate statements.
"Canada will continue to advocate on behalf of Mr. Kovrig and Mr. Spavor alongside its international partners," Champagne said.
Canada's top diplomat added that the country's officials are "deeply concerned" by the detention of Kovrig and Spavor and called for their immediate release.
Kovrig and Spavor were arrested shortly after Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou was detained in Canada in 2018. Meng is facing extradition to the United States after US prosecutors accused her of playing a role in a company that helped countries, including Iran and North Korea, evade US sanctions.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has repeatedly stated that Canada, unlike China, has an independent judicial system and does not link the detention of the two Canadians and the extradition process against Meng Wanzhou. Beijing has said China's judicial system is also independent and denied the claims that the cases against the two Canadian nationals were politically motivated.
The arrests served as a catalyst for a rift in Chinese-Canadian relations, reducing diplomatic relations to its lowest point in years, which have slightly rebounded amid global efforts to contain the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Kovrig and Spavor have now been in detention for more than 18 months. Espionage is a capital offense in China.
