Lawyers for Huawei CFO ask Canadian justice minister to help

TORONTO (AP) - Lawyers for a top Huawei executive are calling on Canada's justice minister to intervene and stop a U.S. extradition request.

Lawyers for Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou asked Justice Minister David Lametti for help Monday and issued a release that says her extradition is "palpably" political. They claim that Meng isn't charged with a crime in Canada.

Canada arrested Meng at the request of the U.S. on Dec. 1 at Vancouver's airport. She is wanted on fraud charges that she misled banks about the Chinese company's business dealings in Iran.

A spokeswoman for Lametti noted the case is before the courts and declined to comment.

China has formally arrested two Canadian citizens in what is widely believed to be a move to pressure Canada into releasing Meng.