Meng Wanzhou, Chief Financial Executive (CFO) of Huawei Technologies, China and daughter of the company’s founder, Ren Zhengfei, thanked everyone who had supported her, as she was released by a Canadian judge to return to China Friday.
The CFO of the Chinese communications giant ended criminal charges against him as part of Friday’s deal with the US Department of Justice in a case that has strained relations between the US and China.
The deal calls for the Justice Department to dismiss allegations of fraud by the end of next year on the condition that Meng claims responsibility for misconducting her company’s business dealings in Iran.
“Over the past three years, my life has been turned upside down. It was a disturbing time in my life. As a mother, wife and company executive. But I believe every problem has a lesson. It was truly an invaluable experience in my life, ” he said.
“I will never forget all the good wishes I received from people around the world. As the saying goes, the bigger the adversity, the more we grow,” he continued.
The deal arrangement, known as the deferred prosecution agreement, ends years of legal and geopolitical disputes involving not only the US and China, but also Canada, where Meng has lived since she was arrested at Vancouver Airport in December 2018.
As part of the deal, disclosed in federal court in Brooklyn, the Justice Department agreed to dismiss the fraud charges against Meng in December 2022 — exactly four years after her arrest — provided she complies with certain conditions, including not challenging any of the government’s rules on factual charges. [ps/ah]
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