Top Huawei boss flies back to China after deal with US
A Chinese technology executive held in Canada on US fraud charges has left the country after a deal with prosecutors, following years of diplomatic tensions over her fate.
Meng Wanzhou, chief financial officer of Huawei, was detained on fraud charges in December 2018 at the request of the US.
On Friday, the US Department of Justice dropped an extradition request for her.
The case infuriated China and strained relations with the US and Canada.
It also prompted accusations that China had detained Canadian citizens in retaliation, which China denied.
"My life has been turned upside down. It was a disruptive time for me," Ms Meng told reporters after being freed from Canadian detention.
"Every cloud has a silver lining," she continued, adding: "I will never forget all the good wishes I received from people around the world."
Shortly afterwards she boarded an Air China flight bound for the Chinese city of Shenzhen, AFP news agency reports.
Details of a possible deal for Ms Meng's release have been the subject of intense negotiations between US and Chinese diplomats.
The US alleged Ms Meng misled the bank HSBC over the true nature of Huawei's relationship with a company called Skycom, putting the bank at risk of violating US sanctions against Iran.
On Friday the US Department of Justice (DOJ) said it had reached a deferred prosecution agreement.
This means the DOJ would hold off from prosecuting Ms Meng until December 2022. If she complied with conditions set by court, the case would eventually be dropped.
The deal, which recommended she be released, allowed her to formally deny guilt for key charges while also acknowledging the allegations laid out by the Americans.
Later on Friday, Canadian prosecutors told a court in Vancouver that they had withdrawn efforts to extradite her to the US and that she should be discharged from detention.
She had been under house arrest in her multimillion-dollar Vancouver home for nearly three years.
Ahead of the court appearance, Ms Meng was seen entering the building accompanied by Chinese consular officials.
The judge subsequently ordered that she go free.
As part of the deal, Ms Meng agreed to a "statement of facts" admitting that she knowingly made false statements to HSBC.
The DOJ said Ms Meng had "taken responsibility for her principal role in perpetrating a scheme to defraud a global financial institution".
The DOJ also said said it was continuing to prepare for trial against Huawei.
