Trudeau condemns Chinese court's 11-year sentence in Canadian's espionage case

BEIJING, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said a Chinese court's sentencing of Canadian businessman Michael Spavor to 11 years in prison for espionage on Wednesday was "absolutely unacceptable" and called for his immediate release.

The United States embassy in Beijing also condemned the sentencing in a statement, saying that proceedings against Spavor and another Canadian charged with espionage were an attempt to "use human beings as bargaining leverage".

The espionage cases are embroiled in a wider diplomatic spat involving Washington and Beijing, and Spavor's sentencing comes as lawyers in Canada representing the chief financial officer of Chinese telecoms giant Huawei (HWT.UL) make a final push to convince a court not to extradite her to the United States. read more

"China's conviction and sentencing of Michael Spavor is absolutely unacceptable and unjust," said Trudeau in a statement.

"The verdict for Mr. Spavor comes after more than two and a half years of arbitrary detention, a lack of transparency in the legal process, and a trial that did not satisfy even the minimum standards required by international law," he said.

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