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> 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> FILE - In this March 13, 2018, file photo, a Huawei employee looks up as he walks toward the company's headquarters in Shenzhen in southern China's Guangdong Province. Canadian authorities said Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2018, that they have arrested the chief financial officer of China's Huawei Technologies for possible extradition to the United States. (AP Photo/Dake Kang, File) (AP) </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> Ms Meng at a capital investment forum in Moscow in 2014. Huawei's chief financial officer was arrested in Canada on Dec 1 and faces extradition to the US. She is the daughter of the company's founder.

A TOP executive and daughter of the founder of Chinese telecom giant Huawei has been arrested in Canada and faces extradition to the United States, officials said on Thursday, angering Beijing days into a trade war truce with the US.

The detention of Meng Wanzhou, Huawei's chief financial officer, comes after American authorities reportedly launched an investigation into suspected violations of Iran sanctions by Huawei, which was already under scrutiny by US intelligence officials who deemed the company a national security threat.

The arrest stirred tensions just as the United States and China agreed to a ceasefire in their trade spat while negotiators seek a deal within three months.

News of her detention rippled through stock markets in Asia, particularly Shanghai and Hong Kong, with tech firms among the worst hit. By lunch, Shanghai was 1.3 per cent lower while Hong Kong was 2.6 per cent off.

"China is working creatively to undermine our national security interests, and the United States and our allies can't sit on the sidelines," US Senator Ben Sasse in a statement linking the arrest to US sanctions against Iran.

"Sometimes Chinese aggression is explicitly state-sponsored and sometimes it's laundered through many of Beijing's so-called 'private' sector entities that are in bed with (President) Xi (Jinping)'s communist party," he added.

Ms Meng was arrested in the western city of Vancouver on Dec 1, Canada's ministry of justice said in a statement.

The ministry said the US is seeking her extradition and she faces a bail hearing on Friday, adding it could not provide further details due to a publication ban sought by Ms Meng, whose father, Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei, is a former Chinese People's Liberation Army engineer.

The arrest occurred on the same day that US President Donald Trump and Mr Xi struck the trade war truce at a summit in Argentina.

"The Chinese side firmly opposes and strongly protests over such kind of actions which seriously harmed the human rights of the victim," the embassy said in a statement.

"The Chinese side has lodged stern representations with the US and Canadian side, and urged them to immediately correct the wrongdoing and restore the personal freedom of Ms Meng Wanzhou."

Huawei said it was unaware of any wrongdoing by Ms Meng and was provided "very little information" about the charges.

"Huawei complies with all applicable laws and regulations where it operates, including applicable export control and sanction laws and regulations of the UN, US and EU," the company said in a statement.

The Wall Street Journal reported in April that US Department of Justice had opened an investigation into suspected violations of Iran sanctions by Huawei.

The New York Times said the company had been subpoenaed by the Commerce and Treasury Departments over alleged violations of Iran and North Korea sanctions.

Huawei is not the first Chinese telecoms equipment firm to face the ire of US authorities.

Earlier this year, the US imposed a seven-year ban on the sale of crucial US components to Chinese smartphone maker ZTE after finding it had failed to take action against staff who were responsible for violating trade sanctions against Iran and North Korea.

The ban nearly killed the Chinese tech company, which said it was forced to cease major operations in May. A month later, Washington and Beijing reached a deal that would strike ZTE from the sanctions list - just days after China reportedly offered to ramp up purchases of American goods to help cut the yawning trade imbalance with the US. American officials denied any connection between the two.

In exchange, ZTE agreed to pay a hefty US$1 billion fine and put an additional US$400 million in escrow in case of future violations. It was also ordered to replace its board of directors and retain outside monitors.

The case showed that China is highly dependent on imports of US-made semiconductors or computer chips and reinforced Beijing's need to become self-reliant on this key technology.

Huawei is one of the world's largest telecommunications equipment and services providers.

But despite global success, its US business has been tightly constrained by worries it could undermine American competitors and that its cellphones and networking equipment, used widely in other countries, could provide Beijing with avenues for espionage.

In May, the Pentagon said that devices from Huawei and ZTE posed an "unacceptable" security risk. Personnel on US military bases are banned from buying equipment manufactured by the Chinese tech firms.

Over the summer, Australia barred Huawei from providing 5G technology for wireless networks in the country over espionage fears.

New Zealand followed suit in November, but said the issue was a technological one.

Britain's largest mobile provider too has joined the global ban on Huawei. On Wednesday, BT announced it was removing Huawei's telecommunications equipment from its 4G cellular network, following a warning from the head of MI6 foreign intelligence service that singled out the Chinese company as a potential security risk.

Despite being essentially barred from the critical US market, Huawei surpassed Apple to become the world's number two smartphone maker in the second quarter of this year. AFP </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> 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.
The chief financial officer of Huawei, Meng Wanzhou, was arrested on 1 December in Vancouver, Canada. She faces extradition to the United States. Huawei says she faces unspecified charges.