Live
Audio Only
Her arrest, revealed late Wednesday by Canadian authorities, is related to U.S. sanctions, a person familiar with the matter said.
The daughter of Huawei’s founder, a top executive at the Chinese technology giant, was arrested in Canada Dec. 1 and faces extradition to the United States, roiling global stock markets as it threatened to inflame Sino-U.S. trade tensions anew.
RELATED
G20 Summit: China Hopes US President Shows Sincerity at Meeting
The surprise detainment of Meng Wanzhou, 46, who is Huawei Technologies Co Ltd’s chief financial officer, raises fresh doubts over a 90-day truce on trade tariffs struck between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping Saturday at the G20 meeting in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Her arrest, revealed late Wednesday by Canadian authorities, is related to U.S. sanctions, a person familiar with the matter said. Reuters was unable to determine the precise nature of the possible violations.
Sources told Reuters in April that U.S. authorities have been investigating Huawei, the world’s largest telecoms equipment maker, since at least 2016 for allegedly shipping U.S.-origin products to Iran and other countries in violation of U.S. export and sanctions laws.
The arrest and any potential sanctions on the world’s second biggest smartphone maker could have major repercussions on the global technology supply chain.
U.S. stock futures and Asian shares tumbled as news of the arrest heightened the sense that a major collision was brewing between the world’s two largest economic powers, not just over tariffs but also over technological hegemony.
A court hearing has been set for Friday, a Canadian Justice Department spokesman said.
Huawei, which generated $93 billion in revenue last year, confirmed the arrest in a statement. “The company has been provided very little information regarding the charges and is not aware of any wrongdoing by Ms. Meng,” it said.
She was detained when she was transferring flights in Canada, it added.
RELATED
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told a daily briefing on Thursday that China had asked Canada and the United States for an explanation of Meng’s arrest, but they have “not provided any clarification”.
The Chinese consulate in Vancouver has been providing her assistance, he added, declining further comment. On Wednesday, China’s embassy in Canada said it resolutely opposed the arrest and called for her immediate release.
In April, sources told Reuters the U.S. Justice Department probe was being handled by the U.S. attorney’s office in Brooklyn.
The U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday declined to comment. A spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office in Brooklyn also declined to comment.
Newsletter
