BEIJING (CU)_China will soon begin trials for the two Canadians who were arrested more than two years ago, a Communist Party newspaper said on Thursday (11 March). According to The Global Times, the pair will “soon be tried” after they were arrested in December 2018, and charged with “crimes undermining China’s national security” in June last year.
Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, commonly knowns as the two Michaels, were detained nine days after the arrest of Meng Wanzhou, a Chinese Huawei official in Vancouver, on a US extradition request.
While her arrest severely damaged relations between China and Canada, the detention of the pair is widely perceived in the West as retaliation for the arrest of the Huawei CFO, although Beijing denies these allegations.
Beijing has barely revealed any details of the charges against the two Michaels, while they were granted consular access only in October last year, for the first time since January.
Kovrig, a former diplomat, has been accused of having used a business visa and an ordinary passport to enter the East Asian nation, in order to “steal sensitive information and intelligence through contacts in China since 2017”, while Spavor, an entrepreneur, has being accused of being “a key source of intelligence for Kovrig”, the Global Times said.
Meanwhile, Beijing continues to claim that the arrest of the Huawei official – who remains free on bail in Vancouver – was a “completely political” move designed to prevent China’s rise. Accordingly, the Communist Party has demanded for Meng’s immediate and unconditional release as her extradition case is being heard by Canadian courts.
The Chinese media outlet gave no details of a date or location of the proceedings against the two Michaels, although it did say that the hearings were delayed on account of COVID-19 prevention measures, and therefore the court will now “push forward the trial soon”.
