Sept 2, 2021: China’s Global Times tabloid says Canadian businessman Michael Spavor, who was convicted of espionage in August, sent photos of military equipment to his Canadian colleague Michael Kovrig, who is also being held in Beijing.

The newspaper quoted unnamed sources as saying on Thursday that the photos and videos taken by Spavor were state secrets.

The paper said Spavor “took pictures on several occasions and illegally provided some of them to people outside China.” “The photos and videos have been identified as second-class state secrets.”

THey added that Spavor was also a “key informant” for Kovrig, and provided him with information for a long time. China arrested the two men in December 2018. Canadian police have arrested Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of the Chinese tech giant Huawei, on a US warrant, accusing her of fraud related to sanctions.

China, which denies allegations that two Canadian cases are linked to Meng, has released some details about both cases. Last month, a court sentenced Spavor to 11 years in prison for espionage, which was condemned by the United States and Canada.

Ottawa has accused China of engaging in “hostage diplomacy”. Kovrig’s espionage case ended in March, with a verdict to be announced at an unspecified date.

The Global Times is published by the ruling Communist Party’s People’s Daily newspaper.

Meanwhile in Canada, a judge is due to rule on Meng’s case on October 21.

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