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Huawei's finance boss says she will fight extradition

Meng Wanzhou's arrest has caused friction between China and the US, with global markets also watching nervously.

Image: Meng Wanzhou is Huawei's chief financial officer
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Huawei's chief financial officer has denied she covered up her company's alleged links to a firm that tried to sell equipment to Iran in violation of sanctions.

Meng Wanzhou was arrested in Canada on 1 December at the request of the US.

She faces charges of conspiring to defraud multiple financial institutions between 2009 and 2014.

Canadian prosecutors have urged a court in Vancouver to keep her in custody but, according to her sworn affidavit, she suffers from severe hypertension and is worried about her health.

The 46-year-old also denied being a flight risk - a concern raised by prosecutors - adding that she has "significant ties" to Vancouver dating back at least 15 years and property in the city.

Her family plans to seek leave to remain in Canada during the case and her husband said they wanted their daughter to attend school in the country.

Meng said she will fight her extradition to the US, adding that she is "innocent of the allegations that have been levelled" at her and will contest them at a trial in the US if she is surrendered.

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It is alleged she used Hong Kong company Skycom to access the Iranian market in deals that violated US sanctions.

She allegedly assured US banks that Huawei and Skycom were different companies but prosecutors say they were one and the same.

It is not yet clear whether Meng will be extradited to the US - American prosecutors have 60 days to formally request this.

If an application is successful she faces a maximum jail sentence of 30 years for each charge if convicted.

China has called for Meng, who is the daughter of Huawei's founder Ren Zhengfei, to be released.

Meanwhile, world markets are watching closely due to fears that the case could escalate the trade war between the US and China.

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