China repeats call to free Huawei’s Meng Wanzhou ahead of Canada extradition hearing
- Daughter of tech giant’s founder due to appear in a Vancouver court as she fights attempt to send her to US to face fraud charges
- Former executive is accused of misleading HSBC to evade American sanctions on Iran
China has urged Canada to release Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou, who is to begin her long-awaited extradition hearing on Monday.
The 47-year-old daughter of the company’s founder Ren Zhengfei has been under house arrest in Vancouver after being detained in December 2018.
The US authorities have requested her extradition to stand trial in the US on 13 criminal counts of conspiracy, fraud and obstruction related to what prosecutors say was a scheme by Huawei to misrepresent itself to HSBC to evade US sanctions on Iran.
The first phase of Meng’s extradition hearing in Vancouver is expected to begin on Monday and run until Thursday.
The court will hear arguments from both sides on whether Meng’s case meets the “double criminality” standard needed to extradite her: that her alleged actions were criminal in both Canada and the US.
The case has fuelled tensions between the US and China and has also seriously damaged Beijing’s relationship with Canada.