That Canada Hostage Swap Reveals the Depth of Huawei's Beijing Ties
Whatever denials the Chinese tech giant made before, its close connection to the government is now unavoidable.
A debt of gratitude.
Photographer: Jimmy Jeong/BloombergIn scenes reminiscent of a Cold War prisoner swap, a senior executive at Huawei Technologies Co. was released Friday, just as China allowed two Canadians to return home after 1,000 days in jail. The exchange will be hailed as a victory both in Ottawa and Beijing. But the political maneuvering required to orchestrate this deal undermines Huawei’s claims of independence from government influence.
The company’s chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, had been holed up in her Vancouver mansion since December 2018, pending extradition to the U.S. over allegations of fraud. U.S. prosecutors accused her of lying to HSBC Holdings Plc about the company’s dealings with Iran as part of an attempt to violate trade sanctions. Michael Kovrig, a former diplomat and senior adviser to the International Crisis Group, and Michael Spavor, a tourism consultant, were detained in China days after her arrest. Last month, Spavor was sentenced to 11 years in prison for spying, while a verdict against Kovrig hadn’t yet been delivered.