Canada's foreign ministry said its ambassador to Beijing, John McCallum, was granted consular access to Kovrig and is pressing for access to Spavor. Meanwhile in Washington, Canada's foreign and defense ministers held talks with their US counterparts on the row. The Canadians were arrested for what China has said is suspicion of "harm to national security" -- a phrase often used by Beijing when alleging espionage. Meng was arrested while changing planes in Vancouver, outraging China and sparking a diplomatic standoff between the North American allies and Beijing. Kovrig was based in Hong Kong for ICG, working on foreign policy and security issues in the region, particularly on the Korean Peninsula.

Source: Philippine Star December 15, 2018 00:56 UTC