China accuses detained Canadians of spying
- 5 years ago
Two Canadians who have been detained by China were accused March 4 of stealing state secrets.
A statement released by the Communist Party’s Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission said former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig was involved with “stealing and spying on sensitive Chinese information and intelligence via a contact in China.”
Kovrig received the information from Canadian businessman Michael Spavor, the statement said.
Tension between Beijing and Ottawa has been high since the arrest of Meng Wanzhou, the finance chief of the Chinese tech giant Huawei. Meng, who has been accused of violating US sanctions against Iran, was arrested in Canada at the request of US authorities. On March 1, the Canadian government approved the request of extradition of Meng to the US.
A statement released by the Communist Party’s Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission said former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig was involved with “stealing and spying on sensitive Chinese information and intelligence via a contact in China.”
Kovrig received the information from Canadian businessman Michael Spavor, the statement said.
Tension between Beijing and Ottawa has been high since the arrest of Meng Wanzhou, the finance chief of the Chinese tech giant Huawei. Meng, who has been accused of violating US sanctions against Iran, was arrested in Canada at the request of US authorities. On March 1, the Canadian government approved the request of extradition of Meng to the US.