Canada approves a U.S. extradition request for Huawei's CFO, angering China

Canada is stuck in the middle of an argument between the United States and China and, for now, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government is sticking with its neighbors to the south.

The Canadian government approved a U.S. extradition request for Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Chinese tech giant Huawei, on Friday. The decision drew ire from Beijing — the Chinese embassy in Ottawa relayed that the government is "utterly dissatisfied" and "firmly opposes" the decision.

Meng, who was detained in December in Vancouver, is accused of lying to banks about Huawei's dealings with Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions placed upon the country. China believes the accusations are part of a U.S. political stunt to hurt a potential competitor to U.S. tech companies.

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Although the Canadian government approved the request, it could be years before Meng is sent to the U.S. since Canada's justice department allows many decisions to be appealed.

Meng is due in a Vancouver court on March, when a date will be set for her extradition hearing.