Donald Trump discusses China’s ‘wrongful detention’ of two Canadians with Justin Trudeau
- White House’s first public comments for months on Kovrig and Spavor case come as trade relations with China continue to deteriorate
- The two also discussed Hong Kong soon after Trump linked progress in trade talks with a ‘humane’ resolution to the situation
US President Donald Trump discussed what the White House described as China’s “wrongful detention” of two Canadians in a phone conversation with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, a spokesman said.
Washington’s latest comment on the issue, the first in several months, came as trade relations between China and the US continued to deteriorate, with Beijing threatening retaliation if Trump fulfils his threat to impose new tariffs on Chinese goods on September 1.
The two men also discussed the ongoing protests in Hong Kong during their conversation on Friday, a day after Trump had appeared to link a “humane” resolution to the crisis with a trade deal.
Relations between China and Canada have worsened drastically since December, when Vancouver police detained Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Huawei, on a US arrest warrant.
Meng is currently awaiting a decision on whether she will be extradited to the US on fraud charges relating to alleged breaches of American sanctions against Iran.
