Meng's extradition hearing likely to proceed

OTTAWA • Canada is likely to announce today that an extradition hearing against a Huawei executive can proceed, legal experts said, worsening already icy relations with Beijing.

The police arrested Meng Wanzhou, the telecommunication giant's chief financial officer, in Vancouver last December at Washington's request.

In January, the US Justice Department charged Huawei and Meng with conspiring to violate US sanctions on Iran.

Ottawa has until midnight on Friday (Saturday 1pm Singapore time) to announce whether it will issue the authority to proceed, allowing a court in British Columbia to start a formal extradition hearing.

Dr Joanna Harrington, a law professor at the University of Alberta, said officials were likely to give the green light.

"I have no reason to see why they wouldn't. We have an ongoing long-standing extradition relationship between the United States and Canada," she said.

Vancouver criminal defence lawyer Gary Botting also predicted that officials would issue the authority to proceed.

But he added that an approval would "invite a whole pile of grief" and possible economic retaliation from China.

REUTERS

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on March 02, 2019, with the headline Meng's extradition hearing likely to proceed. Subscribe