Canadian businessman Michael Spavor called his country’s Beijing embassy from an airport in northeast China. He was questioned by authorities after being barred from boarding a flight from China.
Concerns at the embassy over the call raised alarm when officials learned that another Canadian had been arrested in Beijing on December 10, 2018, according to people familiar with the matter. This time it was former diplomat Michael Kovrig.
Since then, the two men have been sent to the center of a high-profile position between Canada, the US and China, where they have been detained and accused of espionage. Hopes have recently risen among family members and supporters that the men could be released as separate talks to resolve criminal charges against Meng Wanzhou, a CEO of Huawei Technologies Co., in China. Canada has accused China of holding the two men in retaliation for the arrest of Ms. Mix on a US extradition request.
Both parties have dug in too much on claims to bridge, and the discussions have become quiet and according to the people familiar, they are now dormant. The residents of Biden may revisit the talks in the coming months, but the timing of such a move is unclear. A Justice Department spokesman declined to comment.
Vice President Kamala Harris said earlier this month in a call to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that the United States would do everything in its power to release the two men.