China accuses Canada of violating agreement over Huawei arrest
- Beijing’s war of words continues after it says Canada failed to inform it immediately that Sabrina Meng Wanzhou had been detained
- Foreign ministry also claims daughter of telecoms giant has been treated ‘inhumanely’
China accused Canada of violating a bilateral agreement by failing to inform its consulate immediately of the arrest of Huawei’s chief financial officer Sabrina Meng Wanzhou.
“According to the China-Canada consular agreement, if a Chinese citizen is arrested by the Canadian government, the Canadian government should immediately notify the Chinese embassy,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said in Beijing on Monday. “But the Canadian government didn’t do that.”
Lu declined to answer multiple follow-up questions on when exactly Beijing found out about the detention.
Lu also complained that Meng was being treated “inhumanely”, citing state media reports that she was not getting sufficient medical care.
Meng has filed court papers in Vancouver seeking bail and, in a sworn affidavit, the 46-year-old said she had received hospital treatment for hypertension since she was arrested on December 1 for possible extradition to the US.
The state-run Global Times reported, without citing sources, that “it seems that the Canadian detention facility is not offering her the necessary health care”.