John McCallum, the former ambassador to China, also said Tuesday he regrets speaking about the October 2019 Canadian election in a meeting with Chinese officials in the months leading up to it.

The Conservative foreign affairs critic told Champagne during a House of Commons committee meeting Tuesday that the government needs to show Canadians how it will deal with growing Chinese intimidation of Canadians within Canada's borders.

Testifying before the House of Commons Canada-China relations committee, Champagne is urging MPs not to give in to the temptation to tough talk that won't help Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig.

The Canadian government said in a news release that Ambassador Dominic Barton met with former diplomat Michael Kovrig on Thursday and with businessman Michael Spavor on Nov. 10.

Canada needs diplomacy, not chest-thumping, to secure the release of the Two Michaels from China, Bill Kelly says.

O'Toole's comments came during an interview with The West Block's Mercedes Stephenson, as his party prepares to table a motion calling on the government to ban Huawei and its potential participation in the building of a 5G network in Canada within 30 days.

Champagne pointed to the coronavirus pandemic, the economy and climate change as areas where Canada and the U.S. can work collaboratively. 

The president of the International Crisis Group and the United Nations ambassadors for Germany and Britain brought up Kovrig's case at a U.N. Security Council meeting.

Chinese Ambassador to Canada Cong Peiwu branded pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong as violent criminals and says if Canada grants them asylum that amounts to interference in China's internal affairs.

China on Thursday denied it had taken two Canadian men hostage, and repeated a call for the release of a Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou.