Iran Press/ America: Canada has arrested global chief financial officer of China’s Huawei Technologies, who now faces extradition to the United States on suspicion she violated US trade sanctions against Iran, according to a report by The Globe and Mail newspaper.
Meng Wanzhou, CFO of Huawei
Meng Wanzhou, who is also the deputy chair of Huawei’s board and the daughter of company founder Ren Zhengfei, was arrested on Saturday 1 December, in Vancouver at the request of American law enforcement authorities.
“She is sought for extradition by the United States, and a bail hearing has been set for Friday,” Justice Department spokesman Ian McLeod said in a statement to The Globe and Mail on Wednesday.
Huawei has said Ms. Meng faces “unspecified charges in the Eastern District of New York” and that she was arrested when she was transferring flights in Canada.
“The company has been provided with very little information regarding the charges and is not aware of any wrongdoing by Ms. Meng.
The Chinese embassy in Ottawa strongly protested the arrest of Ms. Meng, saying she had not violated Canadian or US law and demanded her immediate release.
“The Chinese side has lodged stern representations with the US and Canadian side, urged them to immediately correct the wrongdoing and restore the personal liberty of Ms. Meng Wanzhou,” the embassy said in a statement. “We will closely follow the development of the issue and take all measures to resolutely protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens.”
Chinese Ambassador Lu Shaye and four high-ranking members of the National People’s Congress also cancelled an appearance before the House of Commons foreign affairs committee scheduled for Thursday.
The decision by Canadian authorities to detain such a high-profile Chinese citizen – and particularly one sought for extradition to the United States – could hurt Canada-China relations.
David Mulroney, a former Canadian ambassador to China, predicted the arrest of Ms. Meng will provoke a backlash in China and hurt Huawei’s efforts to gain business in Western countries.
According to US authorities, Ms. Meng is wanted in connection with sanctions-busting activities in relation to Iran. US President Donald Trump pulled US out of an international nuclear agreement (the JCPOA) on 8 May, and re-imposed fresh sanctions against Iran.
Following the US exit, Iran and the remaining parties launched talks to save the accord. By illegally withdrawing from the agreement, and attempting to penalize all countries which abide by the JCPOA, United States has become the main violator of UN security council resolution 2231.
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Since the deal was signed, the IAEA has confirmed the Islamic Republic of Iran’s compliance with its commitments in 13 successive reports. Yet, Iran has always stressed that it would continue to abide by the JCPOA as long as other parties and the EU could guarantee the country's economic interests.
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Ms. Meng, 46, who also goes by the name Sabrina, was appointed CFO of Huawei in 2011 and is also one of four deputy chairs. Analysts say she is being groomed for the top job at Shenzhen-based Huawei, which is now the world’s second-largest maker of telecommunications equipment. Her father was a former engineer in the People’s Liberation Army.
The news came as Washington and Beijing begin three months of negotiations aimed at de-escalating their bruising trade war, which is adding to global investors’ worries over rising US interest rates and other risks to global economic growth.
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َAccording to the reports, US stock futures and Asian shares tumbled on Thursday due to the arrest of Ms. Meng, fanning fears of a fresh flare-up in tensions between the two superpowers.
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