Beijing’s detention of Michael Kovrig has precedent as an act of reprisal, warns former Canadian ambassador to China David Mulroney
- David Mulroney, Canada’s ambassador in Beijing from 2009 to 2012, sees parallels with a 2014 arrest of two other Canadians
- Kevin and Julia Garratt were imprisoned for more than two years after Ottawa detained Su Bin on a US request
Canada’s former ambassador to China has cited parallels between Beijing’s detention of former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig and the 2014 arrests of two other Canadians – arrests that also occurred after Ottawa acted on a US government request to detain a Chinese national.
David Mulroney, who served as Canada’s ambassador in Beijing from 2009 to 2012, spoke to the South China Morning Post on Tuesday, shortly after reports were confirmed that Michael Kovrig, a former Canadian diplomat who worked in China and now works for the Brussels-based International Crisis Group (ICG), had been detained in China.
Kovrig worked as a first secretary and vice-consul in Canada’s embassy in Beijing for about two years, starting in September 2014, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig detained in China
The Kovrig detention occurred less than two weeks after Canadian authorities arrested Sabrina Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei Technologies, at the behest of the US Justice Department, which seeks her extradition on charges stemming from alleged breaches of sanctions against Iran.
Meng’s bail hearing in British Columbia Supreme Court in Vancouver is expected to wrap up later on Tuesday.
Meng’s arrest has angered Beijing. Over the weekend, Vice-Foreign Minister Le Yucheng summoned Canadian Ambassador John McCallum to warn of “grave consequences”.
It is unclear why Kovrig, who has worked for ICG since 2017, was detained, but Mulroney acknowledged the possibility of his being held in reprisal for Meng’s arrest.