(BEIJING) — China has confirmed it has detained two Canadian men, saying they were being detained on suspicion of “endangering national security.”
Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said Thursday that entrepreneur Michael Spavor and former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig were taken into custody on Monday.
Lu says Canada has been informed of the detentions, but declined to say whether the men have been provided with lawyers. He says they are being handled separately.
The two cases ratchet up pressure on Canada, which is holding an executive of Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei wanted by the United States. China has demanded the immediate release of Meng Wanzhou, Huawei’s CFO and the daughter of its founder.
Asked if detentions were related to Meng’s arrest, Lu said they were being handled according to Chinese law.
