Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou arrived in China on Saturday…the same day two Canadians detained by Beijing returned home.
Meng's nearly three-year U.S. extradition fight ended as she was met at the airport in Shenzen with a veritable hero's welcome, where she was greeted with flowers and applause by a jubilant crowd of well wishers.
Her return follows a deal with U.S. prosecutors to end a bank fraud case against her.
Two Canadians detained by Chinese authorities on spying charges just days after Meng's arrest — Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor — were embraced on the tarmac by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau after they landed in Calgary.
China has previously denied engaging in "hostage diplomacy," insisting that the arrest and detention of the Canadians on spying charges was not tied in any way to the proceedings against Meng.
The extradition drama has been a central source of discord between Beijing and Washington, with Chinese officials signaling that the case had to be dropped to help end a diplomatic stalemate.
Meng was detained in December 2018 in Vancouver after a New York court issued an arrest warrant, saying she tried to cover up attempts by Huawei-linked companies to sell equipment to Iran in breach of U.S. sanctions.
Chinese Foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said the charges against her had been "fabricated" in order to suppress the country's high-tech industries.