OTTAWA -- Relief and joy in Canada over the release of two citizens imprisoned in China for nearly three years is being tempered by concerns about rewarding "hostage diplomacy" and questions of how to deal with Beijing in the future.

China freed diplomat Michael Kovrig and businessman Michael Spavor on Saturday, Asia time, immediately after Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou was granted release from house arrest in Vancouver. The move followed the U.S. dropping a request for Meng's extradition, and came despite Beijing's repeated claims that there was no connection between the cases.

"It's a clear confirmation that hostage diplomacy works, and this is an approach that China has used many times in the past 10 to 15 years," said Guy Saint-Jacques, Canada's ambassador to China from 2012 to 2016, in comments to Nikkei Asia. "They do that to scare other countries with the message that if you want to cross us there will be consequences."

The ordeal of the "two Michaels," as they became known in Canada, ended in a manner fit for a Cold War spy novel. Two jets took off almost simultaneously from opposite sides of the world. Meng was whisked home on a chartered flight to a cheering crowd in Shenzhen, where Huawei is headquartered. Meanwhile, Kovrig and Spavor were quietly flown to Canada, greeted by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau early in the morning on a dark tarmac at Calgary International Airport.

Meng had been arrested on Dec. 1, 2018 and was wanted by the U.S. for bank and wire fraud charges connected to alleged Huawei violations of sanctions against Iran. Kovrig, who was on leave to work for the International Crisis Group after his Canadian diplomatic posting in Beijing expired, and Spavor were both detained on espionage charges in China within days.

The standoff concluded just as Meng's case was nearing a decisive moment in Canadian courts. The extradition request was withdrawn after she agreed to a deferred prosecution agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice, in which she acknowledged a set of facts that may be used to prosecute Huawei in the future.

Officials were at pains to avoid the impression that the Canadians' release was negotiated by the Americans as a prisoner exchange. Kirsten Hillman, Canada's ambassador to the U.S., told broadcaster CTV that China had decided it was time to move on, "having felt for over 1,000 days incredible pressure from Canada [and] from our allies around the world."

A White House spokeswoman said the U.S. Department of Justice plea deal was "independent," although she emphasized that top U.S. officials had repeatedly pressed for the release of the Michaels. China said they were released for health reasons.

The optics told a different story. "Swapped," blared a giant headline on the front page of Canada's National Post newspaper.

Huawei Technologies CFO Meng Wanzhou steps off a chartered plane in Shenzhen on Sept. 25, after her release from house arrest in Canada.   © Reuters

Hoping to avoid more such cases, Saint-Jacques wants to build on a wave of international support for the Michaels.

Saint-Jacques was ambassador when China imprisoned Canadians Kevin and Julia Garratt in 2014, apparently in a bid to prevent Canada from extraditing a Chinese citizen to the U.S. to face charges of stealing military secrets. The Canadians were freed after the man turned himself in and pleaded guilty.

After the Michaels were jailed, Saint-Jacques pushed for Canada to rally other countries and amplify its relatively small voice on the global stage. Last February, with the support of former United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Canada launched a Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention in State-to-State Relations. It did not name any country, and governments other than China use such tactics, but there was little doubt about the intended target.

The declaration has been signed so far by 66 countries and the European Union. Saint-Jacques now proposes turning the document into a treaty with protocols, including sanctions, to discourage hostage diplomacy.

He also suggests trade alliances to undermine China's apparent use of imports and exports as a political weapon, exemplified by the levies and restrictions it has imposed on a host of Australian products.

"In all of this the message to China would be simple," Saint-Jacques said. "We have no problem with you being a superpower and playing a major role internationally, as long as you abide by international law and you stop acting as a bully."

Saint-Jacques said the way to hammer home that message "is to create alliances, which is their fear."

Leaders from other countries also told China directly that they regarded the detention of the two Michaels as arbitrary and unacceptable. U.S. officials said the Canadians were considered Americans and that President Joe Biden had raised their case in a recent phone conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Kovrig, interviewed by Canada's Global News shortly after his return, said, "It was really moving. And knowing that so many people knew about the situation, cared about the situation, really helped us get through a very difficult time."

Guy Saint-Jacques speaks in Beijing while serving as Canada's ambassador to China in September 2016.   © Reuters

China expert Lynette Ong, associate professor of political science at the University of Toronto, argued that while Meng's plea bargain with the U.S. ultimately resolved the case, the "show of force" by so many countries in the declaration against arbitrary detention factored into the decision to let the Canadians go. In her view, the declaration signaled to China that a lot of countries "censure" such behavior, and "China paid a heavy cost."

Either way, the dispute has prompted soul-searching among some Canadians who work with China.

One woman who counts herself as a career-long friend of China -- but who plans to never again set foot on Chinese soil -- is Margaret McCuaig-Johnston. A China expert at the University of Ottawa, she served as a Canadian government liaison official on science and technology programs with China for many years. She was in Shanghai when the two Michaels were picked up.

She recalled being in a meeting with a Chinese executive who dealt with foreign companies, and telling him that the arrests looked like retaliation for Meng's detention. "Oh yes," he replied. "There's a list of 100 Canadians who can be picked up and interrogated anytime."

"I was shocked," McCuaig-Johnston said.

Like many Canadians, she rejoiced over the Michaels' release on social media. But she is also angry.

"I spent a lot of time helping China," McCuaig-Johnston said. "I've thrown away 40 years of collaboration with China to focus on human rights because I've been critical and I wouldn't feel safe going back. I'm so angry at China for doing this to innocent Canadians."

McCauig-Johnston noted that the "chilling" practice of kidnapping people for strategic gains by governments was common in medieval times. "It's absolutely outrageous that this is a tactic of a country in 2021," she said. "China needs to get the message that it's much more in its interest to be collaborative than to bully other countries."

She and Saint-Jacques suggested Canada's relations with China will not return to normal anytime soon. As many as 115 Canadian citizens are still in custody in China on various charges, according to Canadian media reports citing the government.

It appears some are keen to get back to business, however. The Canada-China Business Council hosted an event in Toronto on Tuesday titled "China's 14th Five-Year Plan: Opportunities for Canadian Companies to Pivot and Expand in the World's Largest Consumer Market."