China warns against bullying of citizens amid row with Canada

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has warned against the “bullying” of its citizens amid a diplomatic row with Canada over the detention of a Huawei Telecom executive on a United States arrest warrant.

“The safety and security of Chinese compatriots are our priority. China will never sit idly by and ignore any bullying that violates the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens,” Foreign Minister Wang said in a Tuesday speech in Beijing, without specifically pointing to the case of Huawei’s Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou.

“We will fully safeguard the legitimate rights of Chinese citizens and return fairness and justice to the world,” China’s top diplomat added at the opening of a diplomatic symposium.

Meng was detained in Vancouver on December 1 over US allegations that her company bypassed Washington’s anti-Iran sanctions.

China says Canada has treated Meng in an “inhumane” manner. Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Lu Kang said during a daily press briefing that the Chinese government was not informed by Canada of her arrest and that Beijing “learned this through other channels.”

In his Tuesday address, Wang also pointed to the continuing tensions with the US, calling on Washington to stop treating trade between the two countries as a “zero-sum game.”

“Take a more positive look at China’s development, and constantly expand the space and prospects for mutual benefit,” he said. “There is no need to artificially create new opponents, and an even greater need to avoid self-fulfilling prophecies.”

Meng’s arrest has further intensified US-China tensions despite an apparent truce in their trade war, leading to the summoning of both the Canadian and US ambassadors by Beijing over the weekend.

The Huawie executive, who faces possible extradition to the US, is seeking her release on bail in a Vancouver court on Tuesday as the judge weighs final issues in his decision on that matter.

Tuesday will be the third day of bail hearings in a British Columbia court.

EA