Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou released by Canada, returns to a grand welcome in China

Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou received a grand welcome to China on Saturday as she ended her three-year-long detention in Canada over allegations of fraud. The tech giant's CFO landed back in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen on Saturday, wearing a traditional red-coloured patriotic dress. Departing the plane, Wanzhou waved to the media and well-wishers who had reached the spot to greet her stating that she was 'speechless' the moment her feet touched the Chinese soil. 

The daughter of Huawei Technologies founder was quoted by state-run Global Times as saying, "I'm finally back home. The waiting in a foreign country was full of suffering. I was speechless the moment my feet touched Chinese soil."

While Chinese state media welcomed Meng back in a grand fashion, the communist country remained largely silent about Canadian nationals Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, who were released hours after Meng on Friday. Over the last few years, China-Canada relations had been strained, owing to squabbles over various commodity prohibitions and political feuds related to Meng, Kovrig and Spavor's detentions. 

Meng Wanzhou released by Canada

Meng Wanzhou had been detained in Canada in December 2018 at the behest of the United States on fraud allegations. Following a trial, Canada's Justice Department issued a statement stating that Meng has now the liberty to leave the nation. She was freed on Friday after reaching an agreement with US prosecutors. After being released from Canadian custody, Meng told reporters that her life has been flipped upside down for the past three years and as a mother, wife, and business leader, it was a challenging time for her. 

Meng is accused of deceiving British banking giant HSBC about the actual nature of Huawei's business with Skycom, placing the bank in jeopardy of breaking US sanctions against Iran. The agreement which helped facilitate Wanzhou's release enables her to officially deny guilt on crucial counts while simultaneously admitting America's allegations. As part of the agreement, the Chinese group's CFO admitted to a "statement of facts" acknowledging that she intentionally made false claims and statements to HSBC.