Vancouver: The extradition hearing for Huawei’s chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou, who is at the centre of a diplomatic row between Ottawa and Beijing has been pushed back to March, after the US unveiled sweeping charges against her and the Chinese tech giant.
Wanzhou, the daughter of the founder of Huawei, was indicted along with the company and two affiliates in a US case related to alleged Iran sanctions violations which has inflamed tensions with China. She was arrested at Washington’s request, December 1 as she changed planes in Vancouver, and was later released on bail pending a decision on extradition to the US.
In Meng’s first court appearance Tuesday since being released, the judge moved the start of her extradition hearing to March 6, a month later than previously scheduled, in order to allow the defense time to review the evidence in the case.
Extradition cases can take months or years, noted David Lametti, Canada’s new attorney general. “By the time all the individual’s rights are exhausted, they can actually take a long time,” he told journalists in Ottawa. At the end of the process, if a judge orders an extradition, the Attorney General would have the ‘final say,’ he added.
The case has drawn Canada into an escalating diplomatic crisis with Beijing, which has detained two Canadians in what is being widely seen as an act of retaliation for Meng’s arrest.
China has reacted furiously to the US criminal charges, stating they were the product of ‘strong political motivations and political manipulations’. The company also denied any wrongdoing.
Canadian officials have confirmed to this agency that they received a formal extradition request from the US. The US Justice Department has announced 13 charges against Meng, Huawei and two affiliates. In addition, 10 US federal charges were filed against two Huawei affiliates for allegedly stealing technology from T-Mobile.
AFP