Wanzhou Meng was arrested in Vancouver, on the Canadian west coast, on Saturday December 1, the Canadian Ministry of Justice told the newspaper. Globe and Mail.

– She is wanted and wants to be extradited to the United States. A bail hearing will take place on Friday, but due to a ban on publishing details I cannot say more at this time, said spokesman Ian McLeod.

According to the newspaper, she was arrested at the request of the American authorities.

Huawei says it does not know Meng did anything wrong and says it has received very little information about the matter.

– She was temporarily arrested during a layover, and faces an unspecified charge in New York. Huawei is confident that the courts of Canada and the United States will ultimately reach a correct decision, the company wrote in a statement.

The Company further represents that it complies with all applicable laws where it operates, including export controls and UN, US and EU sanctions and regulations.

– Did not break any laws

The Wall Street Journal wrote in April that U.S. authorities were investigating whether Huawei violated sanctions against Iran by reselling equipment from U.S. computer company Hewlett-Packard. The US Department of Justice declined to comment on the arrest.

China, on the other hand, reacted strongly and says the country “firmly opposes” the arrest.

– Meng has not broken any US or Canadian laws, says a statement from the country’s embassy in Canada. China sent a stern note to the United States and Canada and “demands that they immediately correct the mistake made and restore Meng’s personal freedom.”

The embassy says it will follow this matter closely and do everything in its power to “protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens.”

Key person

Meng’s role at Huawei is not limited to that of the company’s chief financial officer. She is also vice chair of the board of directors and the daughter of founder Ren Zhengfei. The company has quickly become one of the world’s largest smartphone manufacturers and one of the largest companies in China.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson previously said the country does not accept other countries unilaterally applying sanctions based on their own laws.

According to the former Canadian ambassador to China, David Mulrony, this arrest will have major consequences.

Belongs to the Chinese elite

– This is a very big problem. Ms. Meng is, by birth and position, part of China’s highest business elite, he said.

In China, he believes that this arrest is seen as a sign that Canada does not dare to stand up to President Donald Trump. But instead it should be seen as a clear signal that Canada is willing to expose itself to China’s fury by “doing the right thing,” Mulrony says.

He predicts that this arrest will make it difficult for Huawei to continue establishing itself in a number of Western countries. The United States and Australia have banned Huawei 5G networks, and a New Zealand operator was recently refused to install Chinese 5G equipment on its network. The reason was that the equipment posed a significant security risk.

US Senator Marco Rubio congratulated Canadian authorities for the arrest and urged Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to ban Huawei from Canada’s 5G network.