huawei executive Meng Wanzhou leaves the High Court of British Columbia, Canada, March 22, 2021.
China’s diplomatic war wolves are desperately trying to defend so-called “Chinese sovereignty” and “face”, and are making enemies of the world. Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou’s new defense attorney also recently raised the “damage to China’s sovereignty” argument in an attempt to continue delaying the extradition case. However, Canadian prosecutors believe that the argument is not valid.
Taiwan‘s Central News Agency reported that on Tuesday (March 30), Gib van Ert, a new member of Meng’s legal team, argued in a Canadian court that Meng’s extradition to the United States would “undermine China’s sovereignty in international law.
The U.S. Justice Department alleges that Meng made false statements to HSBC in 2013 to deceive the bank into providing financial services for transactions between Huawei and Iran. That meeting between Meng and HSBC took place in a Hong Kong restaurant, according to Van Ert, because the incident took place on Chinese territory and the U.S. has no jurisdiction under international law.
Canadian prosecutors argued that HSBC handled financial transactions for Huawei through the U.S. dollar system, meaning the transactions technically passed through U.S. territory and therefore the U.S. had jurisdiction, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). But Van Ert argued that the U.S. dollar settlement process was not sufficient to establish jurisdiction.
The debate around jurisdiction is expected to continue for several more days, after which extradition proceedings will be suspended for three weeks, the report said.
The real reason for the U.S. prosecution of Meng and Huawei is Huawei’s theft of U.S. technology and secret dealings with Iran in violation of a U.S. sanctions order. But the U.S. Justice Department’s request for Canada to arrest Meng on bank fraud charges is believed to be in line with the “double criminality” principle of extradition proceedings, which requires that the extradited person’s conduct be found criminal in both Canada and the United States.
Since Meng’s arrest, her legal team has continued to present various defense arguments, all of which are said to be aimed at delaying the extradition decision.
The sudden opening of the trial of the two detained Canadian citizens, followed by the confrontation with Canada over human rights in Xinjiang, has continued to worsen relations between China and Canada.
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