A group of mainly Western countries led by Canada has formed a coalition against the detention of foreigners for diplomatic power, targeting a practice that diplomats say has been used by Beijing and Tehran.
Fifty-eight countries, including the US, Japan, Australia, and nearly all members of the European Union, have signed a declaration that is non-binding and has no enforcement tools. Canada’s State Department, which is publicly launching the initiative on Monday, says it is not targeting one country, but is aimed at putting diplomatic pressure on the issue.
Canadian Foreign Minister Marc Garneau told reporters on Sunday that he is seeking support from other countries to join the effort to end the “illegal and immoral” detention. By working with other countries, he said, “we think we have a better chance of putting pressure on those countries using arbitrary detentions,” he said.
Western diplomats have accused China, Iran, Russia, and North Korea in recent years of holding aliens as bargaining chips.
Officials from dozens of countries, including the US, UK and Germany, at a virtual conference hosted by Canada Monday morning, expressed support for ending arbitrary detentions.