A diplomatic row between China and the West appears to be ending, after the release of two Canadians held in China and a Chinese tech executive in Canada.
Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou, arrested on a US warrant in 2018, left Canada on Friday in a deal with US prosecutors.
Hours later it was announced that Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig, accused of espionage by China in the same year, were flying home to Canada.
Beijing denies detaining the Canadians in retaliation for Ms Meng’s arrest.
But critics have accused China of using them as political bargaining chips.
The two men had maintained their innocence throughout. At a news conference, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said they had been through “an unbelievably difficult ordeal”.
“It is good news for all of us that they are on their way home to their families,” he added. “For the past 1,000 days, they have shown strength, perseverance, resilience and grace.”
The prime minister said both men will arrive in Canada early on Saturday. They are being accompanied by Dominic Barton, Canada’s ambassador to China.
Before her release, Ms Meng – the daughter of Ren Zhengfei, the billionaire founder of Chinese telecoms giant Huawei – admitted misleading US investigators about Huawei’s business dealings in Iran.
She spent three years under house arrest in Canada while fighting extradition to the United States.
Mr Kovrig is a former diplomat employed by International Crisis Group, a Brussels-based think tank.
Mr Spavor is a founding member of an organisation that facilitates international business and cultural ties with North Korea.
In August this year a Chinese court sentenced Mr Spavor to 11 years in prison for espionage. There had been no decision in Mr Kovrig’s case.
Earlier on Friday, a Canadian judge ordered the release of Ms Meng, Huawei’s chief financial officer, after she reached a deal with US prosecutors over fraud charges against her.
“Over the past three years my life has been turned upside down,” she told reporters outside the Vancouver courthouse.
“Every cloud has a silver lining,” she continued. “I will never forget all the good wishes I received from people around the world.”
BBC
