The China-Canada Row Over Huawei Has Escalated Dangerously

After the arrest of Meng Wanzhou, CFO of Huawei, China arresed three Canadian citizens and sentenced one to death.

Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou arrives at a parole office with a security guard in Vancouver, British Columbia, Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2018. AP/PTI

Video Editor: Varun Sharma

After Canada’s arrest of Meng Wanzhou, Chief Financial Officer of Chinese phone-maker Huawei on 1 December over charges of spying, the diplomatic row between the two nations has reached dangerous territory.

Soon after the arrest and the possibility of Wanzhou being extradited to the US to face similar charges, China arrested three Canadian citizens, and sentenced one of them to death for drug smuggling in an apparent retaliatory measure. The Chinese have insisted that the cases are unconnected to the Huawei arrest, but in a press conference, the Chinese ambassador to Canada did point out that if Canada banned Huawei from participating in its 5G spectrum, there would be “repercussions”.

As Canada accused China of arbitrary arrests and requested clemency for its citizen sentenced to death, China maintained a firm stance, calling on Canada to respect China’s sovereignty and rule of law.

Watch the video to see the war of words between the sparring nations.