Sens. Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) proposed legislation Friday to create a White House Office of Critical Technologies and Security that would advise the president and coordinate the government's response to intellectual property theft and supply chain risks.
Why it matters: Economic espionage, supply chain issues and national security are inextricably linked.
Since the arrest of a Huawei executive in Canada, 13 Canadians have been detained in China, a Canadian foreign ministry spokesperson confirmed to The Globe and Mail. At least eight have been released.
The big picture: Only three Canadians were previously known to be detained in China since the Dec. 1 arrest of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou. The news comes the same day that the U.S. issued an increased travel warning to American citizens traveling to China, advising them to "exercise increased caution" due to "arbitrary enforcement of local laws."
The State Department issued an increased travel warning Thursday advising U.S. citizens considering travel to China to "exercise increased caution" due to "arbitrary enforcement of local laws."
Background: China has arrested two Canadian citizens in the last month for allegedly endangering Chinese security, though experts tell Axios they were likely detained as a retaliatory measure for Canada's arrest of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou. In December, the State Department also issued an increased travel warning for Russia — where an American citizen is currently being held on charges of espionage — due to risk of "terrorism, harassment, and the arbitrary enforcement of local laws."
Russian news agency Interfax said that Russian authorities formally brought espionage charges against American citizen Paul Whelan on Thursday, per the New York Times.
The backdrop: Whelan, a former U.S. Marine, was arrested in Moscow last Friday and could face up to 20 years in prison if found guilty. Intelligence experts believe he may have been detained as retribution for the arrest of confessed Russian agent Maria Butina. Whelan pleaded not guilty to espionage charges, according to his lawyer.
