Trump ‘would intervene on Huawei CFO’s case to help China trade deal’

Trump reveals he would consider intervening in the case of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou and setting her FREE as part of a broader trade deal to ease rising tensions with China amid national security concerns

  • The president reportedly indicated that Wanzhou’s release could be part of a broader trade deal with China during an interview with Reuters on Tuesday
  • When asked if he would intervene with the Justice Department in her case, Trump said: ‘Whatever’s good for this country, I would do’ 
  • The report came just after a Canadian judge granted Wanzhou US$7.4M bail
  • Wanzhou was arrested in Vancouver December 1 and faces extradition to the US
  • Her release on bail is expected to placate Chinese officials angered by her arrest 

President Donald Trump has said he would consider intervening in the case of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou if it would benefit international relations and help the US secure a trade deal with China. 

Wanzhou was granted a bail of C$10million (US$7.4million) by a Canadian judge on Tuesday evening. She was arrested in Vancouver earlier this month and has been awaiting a hearing on extradition to the US.

After the news of the 46-year-old’s release broke, the president indicated that the move – which is expected to placate angry Chinese officials – could be part of a broader trade deal with China.     

When asked if he would intervene with the Justice Department in her case, Trump told Reuters: ‘Whatever’s good for this country, I would do.

‘If I think it’s good for what will be certainly the largest trade deal ever made – which is a very important thing – what’s good for national security – I would certainly intervene if I thought it was necessary.’

Trump also said the White House has spoken with the Justice Department about the case, as well as Chinese officials.

‘They have not called me yet. They are talking to my people. But they have not called me yet,’ he said when asked if he has spoken to Chinese President Xi Jinping about the case.


President Donald Trump (left) has said he would consider intervening in the case of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou (right) if it would help the US secure a trade deal with China. A Canadian judge granted $7.4million bail to Wanzhou, 46, on Tuesday in court in British Columbia. She was arrested December 1 and faces US accusations that she misled multinational banks about Iran-linked transactions, putting the banks at risk of violating US sanctions

Wanzhou faces US accusations that she misled multinational banks about Iran-linked transactions, putting the banks at risk of violating US sanctions. 

Justice William Ehrcke at a court hearing in Vancouver, British Columbia, on Tuesday granted bail to Meng, on the condition that she agree to wear an ankle monitor, to surrender her passports and to stay in Vancouver.  

The courtroom erupted in applause when the judge granted bail. Wanzhou began crying and hugged her lawyers, before being ordered back into the prisoner box for more directions from the judge. She was ordered to reappear in court on February 6.


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Justice William Ehrcke of the British Columbia Supreme Court (seen top left) granted bail to Wanzhou (right in green) on the condition that she surrender her two passports, agree to wear an ankle monitor and stay in Vancouver and its suburbs under a court-issued curfew 

Huawei, which makes smartphones and network equipment, said in a statement it looked forward to a ‘timely resolution’ of the case.

‘We have every confidence that the Canadian and US legal systems will reach a just conclusion,’ it said, adding that it complied with all laws and regulations where it operates.

China had threatened severe consequences unless Canada released Wanzhou immediately.

A Canadian citizen has been detained in China, Canada said on Tuesday. The Canadian government said it saw no explicit link to the Huawei case, but analysts had predicted retaliation from Beijing. 

Two sources told Reuters the person detained was former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig.

Guy Saint-Jacques, Canada’s former ambassador to China, asked by the Canadian Broadcasting Corp whether the Kovrig detention was a coincidence, said: ‘In China there are no coincidences … If they want to send you a message they will send you a message.’

Wanzhou was detained as part of a US investigation on December 1 as she was changing planes in Vancouver.

The arrest has roiled markets over fears it will exacerbate US-China tensions in trade negotiations that both sides have agreed must be concluded by March 1.

The US State Department is considering a travel advisory for China, two sources said on Tuesday.

Former Canadian diplomat working for an NGO is ‘detained in China’ amid rising tensions between Beijing, Washington and Ottawa over arrested Huawei executive 

 A former Canadian diplomat has been detained in China, two sources said on Tuesday, and his current employer, the International Crisis Group, said it was seeking his prompt and safe release.

Michael Kovrig’s detention comes after police in Canada arrested the chief financial officer of China’s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd on Dec. 1 at the request of U.S. authorities, a move that infuriated Beijing.

It was not immediately clear if the cases were related, but the arrest of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver has stoked fears of reprisals against the foreign business community in China.

‘International Crisis Group is aware of reports that its North East Asia Senior Adviser, Michael Kovrig, has been detained in China,’ the think-tank said in a statement.

‘We are doing everything possible to secure additional information on Michael’s whereabouts as well as his prompt and safe release,’ it added.

China’s Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Public Security did not respond immediately to questions faxed earlier about Kovrig’s detention.

The exact reason for the detention was not immediately clear.

The Canadian embassy declined to comment, referring queries to Ottawa.

Calls to Kovrig’s phones were not answered.

Kovrig, a Mandarin speaker, has been working as a full-time expert for the International Crisis Group since February 2017.

From 2003 to 2016, he worked as a diplomat with stints in Beijing and Hong Kong, among others, according to his profile on LinkedIn. 

 

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