WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), chairman and ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Cory Gardner (R-Colo.), chairman of the Subcommittee on East Asia, the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy, and Chris Coons (D-Del.) today released the following statement after the Chinese government announced it will prosecute two Canadian citizens, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, on alleged spying charges. Kovrig and Spavor were detained on December 10, 2018 in retaliation for Huawei Technologies Co, Ltd. Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou’s arrest by Canadian authorities:
“Last week’s announcement that the Chinese government indicted Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor on charges of alleged espionage after a year and a half of arbitrary detention and confinement in inhumane conditions is deeply troubling. The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) political persecution and arbitrary detainment of these two Canadian citizens, while Canada continues to uphold the rule of law in the case of Meng Wanzhou, only reinforces the international community’s concerns about the CCP’s complete disregard for individual rights and the fair and just application of the law. The United States remains committed to our friendship and alliance with Canada and to upholding the rule of law, and we call upon the Chinese government to immediately release and drop all charges against Mr. Kovrig and Mr. Spavor.”
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