Canadian authorities have arrested the chief financial officer of China’s Huawei Technologies for possible extradition to the United States.

Meng Wanzhou was arrested in Vancouver, British Columbia, on Saturday, Justice Department spokesman Ian McLeod said.

Mr McLeod said a publication ban had been imposed in the case and he could not provide further details.

The ban was sought by Meng, who has a bail hearing on Friday, he said.

The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this year that US authorities are investigating whether Chinese tech giant Huawei violated sanctions on Iran.

Meng is also deputy chairman of the board and the daughter of company founder Ren Zhengfei. </s> VANCOUVER, British Columbia — The reasons that the United States asked the Canadian authorities to arrest a top executive of the Chinese technology company Huawei last week had been shrouded in mystery.

On Friday, the details of the arrest and what led up to it came out in a Canadian courtroom.

At a bail hearing in Vancouver for Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Huawei and a daughter of the company’s founder, Canadian prosecutors said she was accused of fraud. The heart of the charges related to how Ms. Meng may have personally participated in a scheme to trick American financial institutions into making transactions that violated United States sanctions against Iran, they said.

Ms. Meng had “direct involvement” with Huawei’s representations to banks, said John Gibb-Carsley, an attorney with Canada’s Justice Department.

The hearing shed light on an incident that has rattled the relationship between the United States and China. While changing planes in Vancouver on Dec. 1, Ms. Meng was arrested at the behest of the United States, which has for years looked into potential ties between Huawei and the Chinese government or Communist Party. </s> Canada has arrested Huawei's global chief financial officer in Vancouver, where she is facing extradition to the United States on suspicion she violated US sanctions against Iran, the Globe and Mail newspaper reports.

Meng Wanzhou, who is one of the vice chairs on the Chinese technology company's board and the daughter of company founder Ren Zhengfei, was arrested on December 1 and a court hearing has been set for Friday, a Canadian Justice Department spokesman said, according to the Globe and Mail.

Representatives of Huawei, one of the world's largest makers of telecommunications network equipment, could not immediately be reached for comment by Reuters.

Officials for the Canadian and US Justice Departments did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

US authorities have been probing Huawei since at least 2016 for allegedly shipping US-origin products to Iran and other countries in violation of US export and sanctions laws, sources told Reuters in April. </s> Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer and deputy chair of the board for the Chinese tech giant Huawei who was arrested in Vancouver on Saturday, is scheduled to have a bail hearing later today.

According to a statement from the Department of Justice, Meng, 46, was arrested in Vancouver and is being sought for extradition by the United States.

Meng, who is also the daughter of Huawei's founder and CEO, Ren Zhengfei, was granted a publication ban, which prevents the department from releasing further details about the arrest.

The Globe and Mail, citing law enforcement sources, reported that Meng is suspected of trying to evade U.S. sanctions on Iran.

Huawei, an increasingly dominant player in the network equipment market, is under scrutiny from the U.S. and other governments over suspected ties to the Chinese government and possible links to spying.

The company says Beijing has no influence over its operations.

News of Meng's arrest pummeled stock markets in anticipation the move would derail planned trade talks between China and the U.S., the world's two largest economies. </s> BEIJING (AP) — The Latest on the arrest of an executive of Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei Technologies. (All times local):

China's foreign ministry has demanded Canada release a top executive at Chinese telecoms giant Huawei Technologies who has been detained while in transit, and reveal the reasoning behind her arrest.

Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters Thursday that China was in contact over the case of Meng Wanzhou with both Canada and the U.S., which requested her detention on suspicion of trying to evade U.S. curbs on trade with Iran.

Geng also said Meng's legal rights must be ensured. He said neither Canada or the U.S. had so far responded to China's concerns.

Meng, Huawei's chief financial officer, faces possible extradition to the United States, according to Canadian authorities. Meng was detained in Vancouver on Saturday, the day President Donald Trump met with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in Argentina.

China has demanded Canada release a Huawei Technologies executive who was arrested in a case that adds to technology tensions with Washington and threatens to complicate trade talks.

Huawei's chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, faces possible extradition to the United States, according to Canadian authorities. The Globe and Mail newspaper, citing law enforcement sources, said she is accused of trying to evade U.S. curbs on trade with Iran.

The arrest follows a U.S.-Chinese cease-fire in a tariff war over Beijing's technology policy.

Asian stock markets tumbled on the news, fearing renewed U.S.-Chinese tensions that threaten global economic growth.

The Chinese Embassy in Ottawa said Meng broke no U.S. or Canadian laws and demanded Canada "immediately correct the mistake" and release her. </s> Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has fired his Chinese ambassador, John McCallum, after the ambassador made several comments regarding the controversial arrest of a Huawei executive in December, saying that she has a strong case to oppose extradition.

Back in December, Canadian authorities arrested Huawei CFO (and daughter of the company’s founder), Meng Wanzhou, who also served on the board of a Hong Kong company, Skycom. That company allegedly did business with Iran, and prosecutors say that because Huawei did business with US banks, she violated US sanctions against the country. Meng was granted bail in a Canadian court shortly after her arrest, and remains in British Columbia while the US attempts to make a case that she should be extradited to stand charges here.

Earlier this week, McCallum said at a news conference that Meng “has some strong arguments that she can make before a judge” when it comes to opposing her extradition, citing statements from US President Donald Trump, and the nature of the sanctions. While McCallum attempted to walk the statements back, but told the Toronto Star that if the US were to drop the extradition request, “that would be great for Canada.”

His statements suggested that the arrests were politically motivated, and have caused considerable headaches for his government as critics have accused him of interfering in the case. The initial arrest has cooled relations between Canada and China, which arrested two Canadian citizens shortly after Meng’s arrest. The deadline for US authorities to file their extradition request comes this week: January 30th. </s> Meng Wanzhou was detained at the request of the U.S. during a layover at the Vancouver airport

In this courtroom sketch, Meng Wanzhou, left, the chief financial officer of Huawei Technologies speaks to her lawyer David Martin during a bail hearing at B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver, on Monday, December 10, 2018. (Jane Wolsak/The Canadian Press)

President Donald Trump says he would consider intervening in the Justice Department’s case against a top Chinese executive if it would be in the interest of U.S. national security and help forge a trade deal with China.

Trump told Reuters in an interview Tuesday at the White House that if he thinks it would be good for what will “certainly be the largest trade deal ever made” he would intervene if necessary.

A Canadian court granted bail on Tuesday to the top executive of Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei. She was arrested at the United States’ request in a case that has set off a diplomatic furor among the three countries and complicated high-stakes U.S.-China trade talks.

A Canadian judge is setting a string of conditions on a top Chinese executive facing possible extradition to the U.S. while releasing her on $10 million Canadian-dollar bail.

Meng Wanzhou is required her to wear an ankle bracelet, surrender her passports, stay in Vancouver and its suburbs and confine herself to one of her two Vancouver homes from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Justice William Ehrcke of the Supreme Court of British Columbia says he is satisfied Meng, a well-educated businesswomen with letters of reference, does not pose a flight risk.

Meng is the chief financial officer of telecommunications giant Huawei and also the daughter of its founder. She was detained at the request of the U.S. during a layover at the Vancouver airport on Dec. 1 — the same day that Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping of China agreed to a 90-day cease-fire in a trade dispute that threatens to disrupt global commerce.

READ MORE: Canada-China relations turn icy over arrest of Chinese exec

The U.S. has accused Huawei of using a Hong Kong shell company to sell equipment in Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions. It also says that Meng and Huawei misled banks about the company’s business dealings in Iran.

On Monday, China detained a former Canadian diplomat in Beijing in apparent retaliation.

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. </s> VANCOUVER/BEIJING (Reuters) - Canada confirmed on Tuesday that one of its citizens was detained in China but said it saw no explicit connection to the arrest in Vancouver of a top executive at Chinese telecoms giant Huawei Technologies Co.

Confirmation of the detention came soon after the executive, Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou, returned to a packed Vancouver courtroom for a bail hearing in a case that has angered Beijing. Canadian analysts had predicted China would retaliate after Meng’s arrest last week at the request of U.S. authorities.

Former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig, who now works in China for a conflict resolution think tank, was the person detained, two sources said.

Meng, 46, faces U.S. accusations that she misled multinational banks about Huawei’s control of a company operating in Iran, putting the banks at risk of violating U.S. sanctions and incurring severe penalties, court documents said. If extradited to the United States, Meng would face charges of conspiracy to defraud multiple financial institutions, the court heard.

Huawei, which makes smartphones and network equipment, and its lawyers have said the company operates in strict compliance with applicable laws.

Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said he was “deeply concerned” about the detention of a Canadian, adding that there was “no explicit indication at this moment” that it was linked to the arrest of Huawei’s CFO.

But Guy Saint-Jacques, Canada’s former ambassador to China, asked by the Canadian Broadcasting Corp whether the Kovrig detention was a coincidence, said: “In China there are no coincidences ... If they want to send you a message they will send you a message.”

Concern was also evidenced in Washington where the U.S. State Department is considering a travel advisory for China to caution U.S. citizens, two sources familiar with the matter said.

Meng’s arrest has roiled markets over fears it will exacerbate U.S.-China tensions in trade negotiations that both sides have agreed must be concluded by March 1.

The arrest came in connection with a U.S. investigation into an alleged scheme to use the global banking system to evade U.S. sanctions against Iran, according to people familiar with the probe.

China has threatened severe consequences unless Canada releases Meng immediately. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the matter is one for the courts to decide.

Canadian businesses operating in China are starting to feel the chill already, and the signing of one major deal has been postponed, a source said.

China’s Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Public Security did not respond immediately to questions regarding Kovrig’s detention sent via fax. Kovrig works for the International Crisis Group, an independent conflict resolution think-tank which said it was seeking his prompt and safe release.

Tuesday is the third day of bail hearings in a British Columbia court, where a judge will weigh final issues in determining whether Meng should be freed on bail while awaiting extradition proceedings.

Speaking at a Beijing forum on Tuesday, the Chinese government’s top diplomat, State Councillor Wang Yi, said the government kept constant watch on the safety of citizens abroad, though he did not specifically mention Meng’s case.

“For any bullying that wantonly violates the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens, China will never sit idly by,” state television quoted him as saying.

The Canadian provincial court judge on Monday rolled the proceedings over to Tuesday because he wanted to hear more about who would take responsibility for Meng’s actions if she were released.

Meng’s lawyer David Martin had offered her husband as surety, but the judge and the public prosecutor questioned whether he could perform this duty as he is not a resident of British Columbia.

Huawei is the world’s largest supplier of telecommunications network equipment and second-biggest maker of smartphones, with revenue of about $92 billion last year. Unlike other big Chinese technology firms, it does much of its business overseas. </s> VANCOUVER: Chinese telecom giant Huawei's chief financial officer faces US fraud charges related to sanctions-breaking business dealings with Iran, a Canadian court heard on Friday (Dec 7), a week after she was detained on an American extradition request.

Meng Wanzhou was arrested in Canada's Pacific coast city of Vancouver on Dec 1 while changing planes during a trip from Hong Kong to Mexico - ratcheting tensions between the United States and China just as the countries' leaders agreed a truce in their trade war.

A Canadian government lawyer asked the court to deny her bail, saying she has been accused of "conspiracy to defraud multiple financial institutions" and if convicted faces more than 30 years in prison.

She is specifically accused of lying to US banks about the use of a covert subsidiary to sell to Iran in breach of sanctions.

The lawyer said that Meng had personally denied to American bankers any direct connections between Huawei and the subsidiary, SkyCom, when in fact "SkyCom is Huawei." SkyCom's alleged sanctions breaches occurred from 2009 to 2014.

He suggested that Meng has also shown a pattern of avoiding the United States over the past year since becoming aware of the investigation into the matter, argued that she has no ties to Canada and has access to vast wealth and political connections - and thus poses a flight risk.

Meng's detention in Canada came on the day of a summit at which US President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping agreed to a truce in the escalating trade dispute opposing the two economic powerhouses.

China says Meng - the daughter of Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei, a former engineer in China's People's Liberation Army - has violated no laws in Canada or the United States and has demanded her release.

Washington and Beijing have exchanged steep tariffs on more than US$300 billion in total two-way trade, locking them in a conflict that has begun to eat into profits.

Trump tweeted Friday that negotiations to defuse the high stakes dispute were "going very well" but the messages since Meng's arrest have been mixed, roiling global stock markets.

Her appearance at the British Columbia Supreme Court in Vancouver is a prelude to an extradition process that could take months.

CNN, quoting an unnamed official, said the United States saw the arrest as providing leverage in US-China trade talks - although White House trade adviser Peter Navarro has denied any link to the dialogue.

On Friday, Beijing nevertheless alleged that Meng, known internally as the "princess" of Huawei and possible heir to the throne, had become a pawn in the dispute.

"The Chinese government should seriously mull over the US tendency to abuse legal procedures to suppress China's high-tech enterprises," said the nationalist tabloid Global Times in an editorial.

"Obviously, Washington is resorting to a despicable rogue's approach as it cannot stop Huawei's 5G advance in the market," it went on.

Meng spent most of the past week at a women's detention facility in a suburb of Vancouver.

If she is released on bail, she would likely have to surrender her passport and submit to electronic monitoring until she is discharged or surrendered for trial to the United States. All security costs would be borne by her.

The extradition process could take months, even years, if appeals are made in the case. The Vancouver Sun reported on Friday that Meng's husband Xiaozong Liu is believed to own at least one luxury home in the city.

Canada is one of more than 100 countries that have an extradition treaty with the United States, requiring it to cooperate with US Department of Justice requests to hand over suspects.

This longstanding treaty requires that the offence for which extradition is being sought is also a crime in Canada.

A Canadian court must decide if there is sufficient evidence to support the extradition, but then it is left to Canada's justice minister to sign the order.

On Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau defended Canada's arrest of Meng, saying politics played no part in the decision.

"I can assure everyone that we are a country (with) an independent judiciary," Trudeau told a tech conference in Montreal.

READ: Europe should be wary of Huawei, EU tech official says

Huawei's affordable smartphones have made strong inroads in the developing world, but the company has faced repeated setbacks in major Western economies over security concerns.

Earlier this week, Canadian officials said Ottawa was continuing to review Huawei's technology for use in upcoming fifth generation networks.

The company faces being shut out of Australia, New Zealand and US 5G rollouts, and British telecom group BT revealed on Wednesday it was removing Huawei equipment from its core cellular network.

The five nations together form the "Five Eyes" intelligence alliance.
Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou attends a bail hearing in Vancouver while she awaits extradition to the United States. She is charged by Canadian and American prosecutors with conspiracy to defraud multiple financial institutions in order to commit evasion of United States sanctions against Iran so as to conduct business with Iran.