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Dec 10, 2020 4:41 PM -

Canada says 2 citizens held in China have not been tried

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Michael Kovrig (left) and Michael Spavor are shown in these 2018 images taken from video. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP

Global Affairs Canada says reports that detained Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor had been put on trial in China are not correct.

Canadian Embassy officials in Beijing spoke directly with Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials to clarify the media report.

They determined there has been no new development in the cases and say the confusion was caused by an inaccurate characterization of the process made by the Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson.

Kovrig and Spavor are marking two years in separate Chinese prisons.

Canada and dozens of its Western allies say the Michaels are being held on trumped-up espionage charges in retaliation for the RCMP's December 2018 arrest of Chinese high-tech executive Meng Wanzhou on a US extradition warrant.

Canada's ambassador to China, Dominic Barton, is one of the few outsiders to see the pair.

He says Kovrig and Spavor are anything but broken men, and that seeing how they've endured their captivity is inspiring.

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