“It is very important for Canada that extradition agreements are not used for political purposes,” Freeland said in French, according to an English translation of her answers at a news conference. “Canada does not do it that way. And I believe it is obvious that democratic countries such as the United States do the same.”

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Freeland’s remarks appeared to be a reference to President Trump, who said in an interview Tuesday that he might intervene in the legal case if it would advance his effort to secure a trade deal with China.

“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,” Trump said in an interview with Reuters.

At an Atlantic Council forum Friday, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), a member of the Senate Armed Services and Intelligence committees, spoke approvingly of Meng’s arrest. “By all accounts it appears she was facilitating sanctions violations against Iran,” he said. “I want to see her extradited. I want to see her face the full force of U.S. law for violating those sanctions.”

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Asked about Trump’s remarks, Cotton added: “I would not, though, offer to send her back to China or decline to press charges in return for trade agreements. I don’t think that would be a wise course of action. It would send the wrong signal to [Chinese President] Xi Jinping. It would send the wrong signal to our allies. And we can get good trade agreements without doing that.”

Meng’s arrest has triggered a diplomatic row that has quickly escalated. China detained two Canadians this week in what is believed to be retaliation.

Pompeo called for China to release Michael Kovrig, an analyst for the International Crisis Group, and Michael Spavor, who runs cultural exchanges with North Korea. China’s Foreign Ministry has confirmed the two were detained Monday on “suspicion of engaging in activities that endanger national security.”

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“The unlawful detention of two Canadian citizens is unacceptable,” Pompeo said. “They ought to be returned.”

Freeland and Pompeo rejected the notion that the two Canadians are being used as bargaining chips in a trade dispute between the United States and China.

“I don’t see it that way,” Pompeo said. “We will continue to engage in legal processes until we get a just outcome.”

Freeland said Chinese officials have not drawn a connection between the detentions and Meng’s extradition hearing.

“From Canada’s perspective, these kinds of issues ought never to be confused with one another,” she said. “In the detention of Miss Meng, Canada was acting scrupulously with its treaty commitments and in line with the rule of law.”

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Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and Canadian Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan also joined the meeting, which largely resonated with paeans to friendship and shared values. The tone was in striking contrast with the testy exchanges between Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who bristled at Trump’s suggestion that national security necessitated tariffs on Canadian steel.

Mattis noted that his mother’s family immigrated to the United States from Canada, and he listed battlefields where U.S. and Canadian troops fought side by side.

“Canada and the United States are united in security because we are united in democracy, and democracies stick together for common defense,” he said.