US President Donald Trump has said he may intervene in the US case against a top Huawei executive detained and bailed by Canada, if it helps seal a trade deal with China.
He is quoted as saying "Whatever's good for this country, I would do."
"If I think it's good for what will be certainly the largest trade deal ever made - which is a very important thing, what's good for national security - I would certainly intervene if I thought it was necessary," Mr Trump said.
Meng Wanzhou, Huawei's chief financial officer, is wanted by US authorities for violating Iran sanctions - but Beijing has expressed outrage over her detention in Vancouver, ratcheting up tensions in the US-China trade dispute.
Mr Trump said White House officials had communicated with the Justice Department and Chinese officials about the Meng case but said he had not personally spoken to Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Beijing has expressed outrage over Ms Meng's arrest at the request of Washington on 1 December and is holding a former Canadian diplomat in China, intensifying the row.
Ms Meng was granted bail in Vancouver yesterday, but the list of strict conditions of her release pending the outcome of the extradition case is lengthy, and includes electronic tagging.
Explainer: Why is China's Huawei Technologies controversial?
