International Crisis Group says it's 'doing everything possible' to find its employee and secure his release

Janyce McGregor · CBC News · Posted: Dec 11, 2018 9:13 AM ET

Former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig has been arrested and detained in China without explanation, the Canadian government confirmed Tuesday.

"Obviously we are aware of the situation of a Canadian detained in China," said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on his way into question period Tuesday. "We have been in direct contact with the Chinese diplomats and representatives. We are engaged on the file, which we take very seriously, and we are providing consular assistance to the family."

A written statement from Global Affairs Canada said that because of Canada's Privacy Act, no further information would be disclosed about the case of Kovrig, who until recently served as a Canadian diplomat in China.

Chinese officials have not given an official explanation for Kovrig's arrest.

Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale said Canadian officials were "sparing no effort" to make sure Kovrig is safe and appropriately treated, but offered few details on the emerging situation.

"Canadian diplomatic officials have been in touch with their Chinese counterparts to explain how seriously Canadians view this," Goodale said. "Clearly we are deeply concerned and [Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland] and her officials will be taking all appropriate action."

Goodale would not confirm speculation that this arrest could be connected to the recent arrest of a Chinese executive at Vancouver's airport — something Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang warned again Monday could mean "severe consequences" for Canada.

Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer for the Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei, awaits possible extradition to the United States to face fraud charges. She is accused of misleading multinational banks about Huawei's control of a company operating in Iran, putting those banks at risk of violating U.S. sanctions.

Her bail hearing began its third day Tuesday.

China's Vice-Foreign Minister Le Yucheng called in Canada's ambassador to China, John McCallum, on Saturday to express Beijing's anger over Meng's arrest and detention.

The Chinese also called in the American ambassador last Sunday. There's no indication to date that the American request for Meng's arrest and extradition has had any negative effects on efforts to negotiate an end to the escalating tariff war between the U.S. and China.

Detention 'highly inappropriate'

"There is no explicit indication" of a connection to the Meng case at this point, Goodale said.

But it wouldn't be the first time the Chinese detained a Canadian in an apparent act of retaliation.

In 2014, the Canadian government accused China of hacking into government computer systems. A week later, Canadian Christian aid workers Kevin and Julia Garratt, who were running a small café in China, were detained and accused of spying. Julia was released in 2015 but Kevin was detained for two years before being found guilty and deported.

Conservative MP Lisa Raitt, who had a connection to the Garratt case in her riding, said she hopes Kovrig's arrest isn't about payback.

"There's also a lot of negative press in China right now calling us a puppet, calling us a lap dog, so obviously sentiments are rolling very very high," Raitt said, adding she fears consequences for Canadian agricultural exports and international students.

"This is a very troubling situation."

"I would be very surprised if there's valid reason for detention," said Conservative MP Erin O'Toole, who served along with Raitt in the cabinet of the previous Conservative government. "If it's solely related to retaliation, that's highly inappropriate and he should be released immediately."

Kovrig worked as a Canadian diplomat in Beijing and Hong Kong until 2016, and worked on Trudeau's 2016 visit to China.

More recently he's worked as an adviser to the International Crisis Group, which also confirmed his detention Tuesday.

"International Crisis Group is aware of reports that its North East Asia Senior Adviser, Michael Kovrig, has been detained in China," the think-tank said in a statement.

"We are doing everything possible to secure additional information on Michael's whereabouts, as well as his prompt and safe release."

Trade risks for Canada?

Omar Alghabra, the parliamentary secretary for the minister of international trade diversification, said that while he's worried about a Canadian citizen being detained abroad, he's not yet aware of any complications for Canada's trading relationship with China.

"Our agenda is to increase trade by 50 per cent by 2025 to non-U.S. markets. China is an ideal and a good market for our businesses, for our workers, so we want to make sure that we have a productive relationship with the Chinese government," Alghabra said.

"But the Chinese government also knows that our judicial system is independent from our government and that we follow the rules."

Canada has been trying to negotiate some kind of a comprehensive trade deal with China in recent years, although those talks had already stalled before this happened.

Canadian officials from Trudeau on down have emphasized this week that Canada's arrest of Meng at Vancouver's airport was not arbitrary, but done in accordance with the extradition treaty in place with the United States.

A Canada-China parliamentary friendship group had been scheduled to leave on a trip to China on Jan.4. The group was to meet with government officials, civil society leaders and business leaders in three cities to strengthen diplomatic ties.

One of the parliamentarians in the group, Conservative MP Michael Cooper, said that at this point he was still planning to go, but this arrest is "concerning."