Canadian Convulsions > The Two Michaels were never spies! But one blames the other for their arrest in China

 

Michael Kovrig denies his Chinese detention was due to alleged ‘espionage’

One blames the other for their arrest!

By Jeff Semple  Global News

Posted November 24, 2023 6:36 pm

 Updated November 27, 2023 6:22 am

Michael Kovrig, the former Canadian diplomat detained in China, is denying allegations that he conducted covert intelligence work that led to his arrest and the detention of fellow Canadian Michael Spavor.

“I was never involved in espionage activities,” Kovrig told Global News.

“Any insinuation that I was anything but open and honourable in my interactions with Michael Spavor is false.”

The comments were made in response to a recent report in the Globe and Mail newspaper, citing unnamed sources, which claimed Spavor blames the Canadian government and Kovrig for his detention. According to the report, Spavor is seeking a multi-million-dollar settlement from Ottawa, alleging he was detained because he unwittingly provided intelligence on North Korea to Kovrig.

Kovrig told Global News that when he first saw the report, he was shocked and confused.

“I thought it was either Chinese disinformation or the results of something like a game of ‘broken telephone,'” he said.

The ‘Two Michaels’ became known internationally following their arrests by Beijing in 2018 on charges of espionage. The Canadian government said that Kovrig and Spavor were political pawns, arbitrarily detained in response to the arrest of Chinese tech executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver at the request of the United States.

After nearly three years, Meng’s extradition case was dropped and she was allowed to return to China on Sept. 24, 2021. ‘The Michaels’ were freed hours later.

It took Trudeau's government nearly 3 years to figure out a way to drop charges against Meng Wanzhou, CFO of Huawei, and daughter of the founder. She should never have been arrested in the first place.

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Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor share a laugh after landing in Calgary, where they were greeted by the Canadian Prime Minister. Twitter / @JustinTrudeau

Prior to his detention, Kovrig had worked as a diplomat at the Canadian Embassy in Beijing from 2014–2016. He then took an unpaid leave to join the International Crisis Group, an independent global think tank.

“In both of my roles, one area I worked on was trying to engage China in an effort to get the North Koreans to stop developing and proliferating nuclear weapons and missile technology,” Kovrig said.

“So of course we were interested in better understanding the DPRK (the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea). That involved talking with people who were knowledgeable about the country, doing analysis and making recommendations.”

Spavor, Kovrig’s former friend and fellow Canadian ex-pat, had unique access to North Korea. The entrepreneur had moved to China and was working to drum-up investments in the Hermit Kingdom.

In 2013, Spavor made headlines when he helped to facilitate a trip to North Korea for American basketball star Dennis Rodman. That led to Spavor’s unlikely friendship with North Korea’s reclusive dictator, Kim Jong Un.

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Instagram photos from 2017 show Canadian Michael Spavor jet-skiing and sharing cocktails with Kim Jong-un. Instagram

Spavor’s social accounts showed images of he and Kim sharing cocktails aboard one of Kim’s private boats. It is alleged that Spavor later recounted his experiences to Kovrig over drinks.

Spavor’s lawyers claim that unbeknownst to him, Kovrig then shared that intelligence with officials in Ottawa and in Beijing, which ultimately led to Spavor’s arrest.

0:38

Biden shouts out Two Michaels in speech to Canadian Parliament: ‘Our citizens are not bargaining chips’

Kovrig denied ever conducting any covert intelligence gathering. Regarding his discussions with Spavor, Kovrig told Global News: “He knew he was talking to a diplomat.”

“As a diplomat, I wrote diplomatic reports for Global Affairs Canada. As a Crisis Group adviser, I write for the public and my work is published on ICG’s website and in the media,” he said.

“In both roles, I was and always am forthright and open about my identity, my employer and the substance of my work.”

Guy Saint Jacques, Canada’s former ambassador to China from 2012 -2016, defended Kovrig’s position and denied allegations that he was a spy.

“Kovrig was a good political officer. And there is an important distinction with spying work and political reporting work,” Saint Jacques told Global News. “Diplomats that are assigned to political sections abroad are charged with doing political reporting. Of course, in a country like China, it’s very difficult to have access to good information because it’s so opaque.

“Michael, being able to travel around, anyone at the embassy would have been interested to hear what he had learned during his trips. And Michael Kovrig was very open about this. This was not done in secret.”

Saint Jacques believes Spavor’s arrest was more likely due to his work in North Korea, which was well known.

“I think that the Mr. Spavor was watched by the Chinese security people. And the reason for this is that China considers North Korea as its backyard,” he said.

“And here is a foreigner, a Canadian, who has very close access to the North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, something that no Chinese has. And for that reason, there was a bit of jealousy or concern of how influential Mr. Spavor could be. And from my perspective, I think this is the main reason why he was arrested by the Chinese.”

Beijing capitalized on the allegations in the Globe and Mail report, defending its prosecution of Kovrig and Spavor.

2:28

Canada and China’s relationship status after Meng, 2 Michaels return home: it’s complicated

In a statement, China’s embassy in Ottawa said the two Canadians were “suspected of committing crimes endangering China’s national security.”

“Recent relevant reports once again prove that the above facts cannot be denied,” the embassy said.

Kovrig told Global News that he’s “deeply saddened to see a few fragmentary comments from anonymous sources get turned into a false media narrative.”

He said being forced to respond to false claims felt all too reminiscent of his time in captivity.

“As a detainee, you have to defend your own identity, your sense of truth and reality, against relentless efforts to force you to accept a fake reality,” he said.

“This (recent report) brought it back into the present and reopened old wounds. It felt like once again being subjected to a false narrative while everyone is watching.”

A spokesperson for Global Affairs Canada echoed that sentiment: “Perpetuating the notion that either Michael was involved in espionage is only perpetuating a false narrative under which they were detained by China.”

Spavor and his lawyers declined to comment on the allegations.

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Corruption is Everywhere - I was right! Nadine Menendez is an Egyptian plant!

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Actually, I accused Nadine of being an Egyptian plant three weeks ago: Personally, I think Nadine is inordinately involved here. Could it be she is an Egyptian plant? and again one week ago: I really hope Nadine is investigated as a potential spy for Egypt. It just looks so right.

Sen. Bob Menendez, wife accused of being foreign agents

as photos show meeting with Egyptian officials

By Ryan King, Priscilla DeGregory and Ben Kochman

Published Oct. 12, 2023, 12:30 p.m. ET

NYPost

Pictures released by the feds Thursday show New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez and his wife meeting with Egyptian officials — as the pair were hit with fresh charges of illegally acting as foreign agents of the country while allegedly pocketing hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of gold bars and other bribes.

Menendez, 69, his wife Nadine and Egyptian-born business associate Wael Hana were all charged with helping the veteran Democrat — already accused of secretly lobbying his colleagues to unfreeze $300 million in military aid earmarked for Cairo officials — act on behalf of Egypt without disclosing it to the US government.

Menendez’s alleged time as an unregistered agent of Egypt came while he held the powerful post as chair of the Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee — which was tasked with overseeing US military funding to the country.

The new indictment includes explosive details regarding an alleged May 2019 meeting in which the senator met in his Washington DC office with an Egyptian intelligence official to discuss Congress’s reservations about funding the Egyptian military in light of a 2015 Egyptian airstrike on a tourist group that seriously injured an American citizen.

At the time, some members of Congress were objecting to the US providing Egypt with military aid due to the attack, according to the court papers unsealed in Manhattan federal court.

Shortly after the meeting, which was also attended by Nadine and Hana the senator searched the web for information about the airstrike and the American’s injuries, court papers unsealed in Manhattan federal court say.

A week later, the same Egyptian agent texted Hana that Mendendez “would sit very comfortably” if he helped resolve the matter.

“Consider it done,” Hana replied.

Nadine Mendendez also deleted her texts with Hana about the airstrike episode which included screenshots of the US citizen’s attorney’s claims about the event, court papers say.

The court papers do not further identify the airstrike, but Egyptian officials admitted in September 2015 that the country’s security forces had killed 12 people and injured 10 more after mistakenly attacking a tourist group.

The indictment does not draw a direct line between the May 2019 meeting and alleged efforts that Menendez may have taken to assuage his colleagues’ concerns about the airstrike.

That could explain why it was not mentioned in the previous indictment, which more directly connected the alleged favors Menendez is accused of exchanging for bribes.

The filing unsealed Thursday also accuses Menendez of hypocritically calling out former Florida GOP Congressman David Rivera for violating the same Foreign Agent Registration Act he’s now accused of breaching himself.

In May 2020, Mendendez sent a press release asking the Justice Department to investigate Rivera for working for Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro and Venezuela’s state oil company Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A.

Rivera, who represented a Miami-area district in Congress from 2011 to 2013, was later arrested on federal criminal charges of money laundering and representing a foreign government without registering.

Yet Menendez’s finger-pointing came months after the senator had met with the Egyptian official in his office and allegedly began violating the same foreign agent law, the new indictment says.

Menendez, his wife and Hana —  the Edgewater, NJ., businessman accused of being a middleman between the Menendez couple and Egyptian officials   — have all previously pleaded not guilty, as have two other co-defendants in the case.

In a statement Thursday, Menendez said the latest charge “flies in the face of my long record of standing up for human rights and democracy in Egypt and in challenging leaders of that country, including President El-Sisi on these issues.

“I have been, throughout my life, loyal to only one country — the United States of America, the land my family chose to live in democracy and freedom,” he said. “Piling new charge upon new charge does not make the allegations true. The facts haven’t changed, only a new charge. It is an attempt to wear someone down and I will not succumb to this tactic. I again ask people who know me and my record to give me the chance to present my defense and show my innocence.”

Hana’s attorney, Larry Lustberg, said in a statement that, “The new allegation that Wael Hana was part of a plot concocted over dinner to enlist Senator Menendez as an agent of the Egyptian Government is as absurd as it is false.

“As with the other charges in this indictment, Mr. Hana will vigorously defend against this baseless allegation.”

If you are really innocent, is it necessary to 'vigorously' defend yourself?

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Bits and Bites From Around the World > Swiss Minister Visits Mannequins; Pr William Criticises Billionaires; British Support for Massacre of Millions

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Apparently, he's lecturing them on how the government has everything in control.

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‘Robbing from our children’s future’: Prince William criticises

billionaires for space ventures, says they take focus off Earth

14 Oct, 2021 10:21

(L) © REUTERS / Joe Skipper; (C) © REUTERS / Mike Blake; (R) © REUTERS / Henry Nicholls

In a rare moment of almost open reproval coming from a British royal, the Duke of Cambridge appeared to criticise entrepreneurs involved in commercial space projects, saying humanity needs to “repair this planet” first.

Environmental issues should become a priority for the people living on Earth, be it younger generations or those who have already achieved a lot and are now investing their money and efforts in space ventures, Prince William has said. 

“We need some of the world’s greatest brains and minds fixed on trying to repair this planet, not trying to find the next place to go and live,” he pointed out during an interview broadcast on BBC on Thursday.

In a thinly veiled reprimand of Elon Musk, Richard Branson, and Jeff Bezos – the latter of whom just sent 90-year-old ‘Star Trek’ actor William Shatner into space – Prince William said that he himself has “absolutely no interest” in heading above the clouds.

The carbon cost of space flights is a “fundamental question,” the British royal said. He added that those who have both intellectual and financial resources should invest in environmental efforts “rather than giving up and heading out into space to try and think of solutions for the future.” Otherwise, there will be no playing outdoors for coming generations, whose “futures are basically threatened the whole time,” the father-of-three suggested.

“If we’re not careful, we’re robbing from our children’s future through what we do now,” he said, adding, “I think that’s not fair.”

The prince’s comments drew a range of reactions on social media. While some praised him for “talking common sense” and highlighting the “money wasted” on space projects, others suggested that somebody “living off the taxpayers money” was not in any place to criticise private initiatives.

Caring for our planet and space travel “are not mutually exclusive,” some commentators said, pointing out that space exploration “could develop technology that benefits us here on Earth.”

Prince William also praised his father Prince Charles’ efforts in highlighting climate change issues, despite it being a “hard road.” “He’s had a really rough ride on that, and I think he’s been proven to have been well ahead of the curve,” William said, while expressing hopes that his own son, Prince George, will not have “to ramp it up even more.”

“For me, it would be an absolute disaster if George is sat here… in like 30 years’ time whatever, still saying the same thing, because by then we will be too late.”

This week, the Duke of Cambridge, together with his wife Kate Middleton, visited an event in West London to encourage environmental awareness among school children. On Sunday, a green carpet will be rolled out for the royal couple to attend the Earthshot Prize awards ceremony, William’s initiative. Its first five winners for offering solutions to environmental problems will be given one million pounds (1.4 million US dollars) each.

William’s younger brother Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle, who are now living on Musk and Bezos’ side of the Atlantic, are also known to be vocal advocates of protecting the planet from climate change. However, they have often found themselves in hot water for using private jets, which some see as hypocritical given their carbon footprint.

It's hard to disagree with what he is saying, especially when you believe that these billionaires are not going into space to find solutions to the Earth's problems; they are going there to feed their hungry egos.

However, I disagree with global warming being the primary problem with the earth. Child sexual abuse and poverty are far and away more devastating the global warming.

British propaganda campaign incited mass slaughter of communists

in Indonesia in 1960s, declassified papers reveal

17 Oct, 2021 14:47 / Updated 6 hours ago

An anti-Communist rally in Indonesian capital Jakarta in October 1965. © AFP

British spies played a part in the mass murder of Communist Party of Indonesia (PKI) members in the 1960s, urging locals, including army generals, to “cut out” the “communist cancer,” declassified papers have revealed.

The Indonesian Army’s brutal clampdown on the PKI in 1965 and 1966 is considered to be one of the worst mass murders of the 20th century. Between 500,000 and three million supporters of the Communist Party were slaughtered, according to various estimations.

Declassified Foreign Office documents, which were recently released by Britain’s National Archives and seen by The Guardian newspaper, indicate that the UK isn’t without fault in those shocking events.

The British Foreign Office had always denied the country’s involvement in the brutal clampdown on those blamed of communist links in Indonesia.

But it turns out that London focused its propaganda machine on the founding Indonesian President Sukarno and his communist backers over the leader’s stern opposition to the Federation of Malaya, which the UK thought should unite its former colonies in the region.

Tensions between the PKI and the Indonesian military had been mounting since the early 1960s, with the president struggling to balance the rivaling forces. The army-sponsored massacre of communists began after a failed coup attempt by the supporters of Sukarno within the army ranks on October 1, 1965.

Several months before that, a team of specialists from the Foreign Office’s Information Research Department (IRD) had already been deployed in Singapore to produce black propaganda to undermine Sukarno’s rule, according to The Guardian. The failed coup only made it easier for the propagandists to influence their intended audience, which included anti-communist politicians and Indonesian army generals.

The propaganda was shared through an Indonesian-language newsletter, which was said to have been the work of Indonesian immigrants, but was actually issued by British specialists in Singapore. Within a year, some 28,000 copies of the newsletter had been published. The UK also funded a radio station, which Malaysians had been broadcasting into Indonesia.

Shortly after the massacre of the communists by the military began, the British-produced newsletter called for “the PKI and all communist organisations” to “be eliminated.” It claimed that Indonesia will remain in peril “as long as the communist leaders are at large and their rank and file are allowed to go unpunished.”

“Procrastination and half-hearted measures can only lead to… our ultimate and complete destruction,” the authors of the pamphlet warned their readers.

The killings allegedly intensified across the Indonesian archipelago in the weeks following the publication of the newsletter, with The Guardian insisting that “there can be little doubt that British diplomats became aware of what was happening.” The UK spies in the region had all the means to intercept Indonesian government communications and monitor the movement of its military, according to the paper.

One of the newsletters, released during the clampdown on the communists, had praised “the fighting services and the police” for “doing an excellent job.” The British propagandists compared the PKI to Adolf Hitler and Genghis Khan in the pamphlet, and insisted that “the work started by the army must be carried on and intensified.”

Moreover, a letter from Norman Reddaway, one of the leading propagandists working in Singapore, to the British ambassador in Jakarta revealed the UK’s strategy “to conceal the fact that the butcheries have taken place with the encouragement of the generals.” He wrote that such an approach should’ve been taken in the hope that the generals would “do us better than the old gang.”

The Foreign Office experts and Indonesian generals were “singing in harmony,” Reddaway insisted in another declassified document. He also celebrated the British propaganda for being able to abolish Sukarno’s opposition to the Federation of Malaya project at “minimal cost” and within just half-a-year.

What Reddaway described as “the old gang” was completely crushed by the bloody events of the mid-1960s. President Sukarno was arrested in 1967 and died three years later under house arrest.

He was overthrown by General Suharto, who had been leading the Indonesian Army. Suharto then ruled Indonesia until 1998, enjoying political and economic support from the West. Transparency International (TI) labeled him the most corrupt politician in modern history in 2004, claiming that he embezzled between $15 billion and $35 billion during his time in office.

Documents that were declassified in the US in 2017 revealed that Washington also not only had “detailed knowledge” of the massacre of communists in Indonesia, but provided “active support” for those actions.

A Yale University study described the slaughter ordered by Suharto as an “absolutely essential cleaning out,” detailing the killing of from “50 to 100 PKI members” every night by civilian anti-communist groups with the “blessing” of the military.