Dear President Xi Jinping,
We, the undersigned scholars, former diplomats and others with an interest in understanding China and building bridges, are deeply concerned about the recent detentions of Canadian citizens Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor. We request that you immediately release Mr. Kovrig and Mr. Spavor so that they may be reunited with their families.
Many of us know Michael Kovrig through his work as a diplomat in Beijing and as the senior expert for Northeast Asia at the International Crisis Group, an organization whose mission is to “build a more peaceful world.” In both roles, Mr. Kovrig regularly and openly met with Chinese officials, researchers and scholars to better understand China’s positions on a range of important international issues. Michael Spavor has devoted his time to the task of building relationships between North Korea and China, Canada, the United States and elsewhere.
These meetings and exchanges are the foundation of serious research and diplomacy around the world, including for Chinese scholars and diplomats. However, Mr. Kovrig’s and Mr. Spavor’s detentions send a message that this kind of constructive work is unwelcome and even risky in China. We who share Mr. Kovrig’s and Mr. Spavor’s enthusiasm for building genuine, productive and lasting relationships must now be more cautious about travelling and working in China and engaging our Chinese counterparts. That will lead to less dialogue and greater distrust, and undermine efforts to manage disagreements and identify common ground. Both China and the rest of the world will be worse off as a result.
We therefore respectfully ask you to free these two Canadian citizens.
Signatories (institutional affiliations are included for identification purposes only and do not imply institutional endorsement):
Diplomatic Community
Alton, Lord David. Member of the House of Lords, former member of the House of Commons, United Kingdom
Berner, Örjan. Former Ambassador of Sweden to Russia, Poland, India, Germany and France
Bild, Fred. Former Ambassador of Canada to China
Caron, Joseph. Former Ambassador of Canada to China
Chhabra, Tarun. Former Director, Strategic Planning, U.S. National Security Council; Fellow, the Brookings Institution
Drake, Earl. Former Ambassador of Canada to China and Indonesia
Edel, Charles. Former senior adviser to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry; Senior Fellow, U.S. Studies Center, University of Sydney
Evans, Gareth. Former Foreign Minister of Australia; President Emeritus of International Crisis Group
Fuchs, Michael. Former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs
Garnaut, John. Former Senior Adviser to Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull
Garside, Roger. Former First Secretary (Political), British Embassy Beijing; former Director of Public Affairs, London Stock Exchange
Guajardo, Jorge. Former Ambassador of Mexico to China
Hum, Sir Christopher, KCMG. Former Ambassador of the U.K. to China
Locke, Gary. Former Ambassador of the U.S. to China; former U.S. Commerce Secretary
Lord, Winston. Former Ambassador of the U.S. to China; former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs
Medeiros, Evan S. Penner Family Chair in Asian Studies, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University; former Senior Director for Asian Affairs, U.S. National Security Council
Mitchell, Derek. Former Ambassador of the U.S. to Myanmar; former U.S. Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense; President, National Democratic Institute
Mulroney, David. Former Ambassador of Canada to China; Senior Fellow, Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto
Parton, Charles. Adviser, U.K. House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee; former adviser, British Embassy in Beijing; former adviser, E.U. Delegation to Beijing
Patten, Christopher, CH. Former European Commissioner for External Relations; Chancellor of the University of Oxford
Rifkind, Sir Malcolm, KCMG, QC. Former Foreign Secretary of the U.K.; Distinguished Fellow, Royal United Services Institute
Saint-Jacques, Guy. Former Ambassador of Canada to China
Shirk, Susan. Former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
Skala, Björn. Former Ambassador of Sweden to China; Former Swedish Under Secretary for Political Affairs
Smith, Ric. Former Ambassador of Australia to China
Stanzel, Volker. Former Ambassador of Germany to China; Vice President, German Council on Foreign Relations
Wright, Robert. Former Ambassador of Canada to China
Academic community
Ako, Tomoko. Associate Professor, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo
Alford, William P. Vice Dean, Graduate Program and International Legal Studies, and Director, East Asian Legal Studies Program, Harvard Law School
Almén, Oscar. Research Fellow, Department of Government, Uppsala University
Baksi, Kurdo. Sweden-based writer and commentator; winner of the Olof Palme Prize in 1999
Barmé, Geremie. Professor Emeritus, Australian National University; Founding Director, Australian Centre on China in the World
Batongbacal, Jay L. Professor, College of Law, University of the Philippines
Baviera, Aileen. Professor of China Studies, Asian Center, University of the Philippines
Beaugrand-Champagne, Jérôme. Li Ka Shing Visiting Professor of Practice, Faculty of Law, McGill University
Beeson, Mark. Professor of Political Science and International Relations, University of Western Australia
Béja, Jean-Philippe. Emeritus Senior Research Fellow at the National Center for Scientific Research and the Center for International Studies and Research, Sciences-Po
Benner, Thorsten. Director, Global Public Policy Institute
Berger, Bernt. Director, Asia Department, German Council on Foreign Relations
Berkofsky, Axel. Professor, Department of Political and Social Sciences, University of Pavia, Italy
Bisley, Nick. Head, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, and Professor of International Relations, La Trobe University
Bonnin, Michel. Director of Studies, École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales
Brady, Anne-Marie. Professor in Political Science and International Relations, University of Canterbury
Brook, Timothy. Republic of China Chair, Department of History, University of British Columbia
Bring, Ove. Professor Emeritus of International Law, Stockholm University
Bush, Richard C. Washington-based senior scholar on Northeast Asia studies
Callahan, Bill. Professor of International Relations, London School of Economics and Political Science
Clarke, Donald. Professor of Law and David Weaver Research Professor, George Washington University Law School
Coggins, Bridget L. Associate Professor of Political Science, University of California, Santa Barbara
Cohen, Jerome A. Professor, Chair of U.S.-Asia Law Institute, New York University School of Law; Adjunct Senior Fellow for Asia, Council on Foreign Relations
Cook, Malcolm. Non-resident Fellow, Lowy Institute
Cooper, Zack. American Enterprise Institute
Creutzfeldt, Benjamin. Non-resident Fellow, Foreign Policy Institute, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University.
Davis, Michael C. Professor of Law and International Affairs, O.P. Jindal Global University
Davies, Gloria. Professor of Chinese Studies, Monash University
Doshi, Rush. Brookings-Yale Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Dube, Clayton. University of Southern California
Dussel Peters, Enrique. Professor, National Autonomous University of Mexico; Director, Centre for China-Mexico Studies
Dutton, Peter A. Senior Fellow, U.S.-Asia Law Institute, New York University School of Law
Economy, Elizabeth C. C.V. Starr Senior Fellow and Director, Asia Studies, Council on Foreign Relations; Distinguished Visiting Fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University
Ellström, Lars. Sinologist; retired banker; former Swedish Cultural Attaché to China
Esteban, Mario. Senior Analyst, the Elcano Royal Institute; Senior Lecturer at the Centre for East Asian Studies, the Autonomous University of Madrid
Falkenheim, Victor C. Professor Emeritus, Department of Political Science, University of Toronto
Fällman, Fredrik. Associate Professor of Sinology, University of Gothenburg
Fewsmith, Joseph. Professor of International Relations, Boston University Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies
Fiskesjö, Magnus. Associate Professor, Department of Anthropology, Cornell University
Forsby, Andreas Bøje. Researcher, Nordic Institute of Asian Studies, University of Copenhagen
Fravel, M. Taylor. Arthur and Ruth Sloan Professor of Political Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Fullilove, Michael. Executive Director, Lowy Institute
Funabashi, Yoichi. Chairman, Asia Pacific Initiative
Gallagher, Mary E. Professor, Department of Political Science and Director, Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies, University of Michigan
Glaser, Bonnie. Senior advisor for Asia and director of the China Power Project, Center for Strategic and International Studies
Goddard, Stacie. Professor, Department of Political Science, Wellesley College
Godement, François. Senior Advisor for Asia, Institut Montaigne
Hart, Melanie. Senior Fellow and Director of China Policy, Center for American Progress
Hayton, Bill. Associate Fellow, Chatham House
Heginbotham, Eric. Principal Research Scientist, Center for International Studies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Hemmings, John. Director, Asia Studies Centre, Henry Jackson Society
Heydarian, Richard. Manila-based columnist and scholar
Hilpert, Hanns Günther. Berlin-based senior researcher on Asia Studies
Hosoya, Yuichi. Professor of International Politics, Faculty of Law, Keio University
Howson, Nicholas Calcina. Professor, University of Michigan Law School
Hughes, Christopher. Professor of International Relations, London School of Economics and Political Science
Hui, Victoria Tin-bor. Associate Professor, University of Notre Dame
Huotari, Mikko. Deputy Director, Mercator Institute for China Studies
Ishii, Tomoaki. Professor, Meiji University
Jones, Bruce. Former senior officer, United Nations; foreign policy scholar, Washington, DC
Kawashima, Shin. Professor, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo
Kennedy, Scott. Senior Adviser, Freeman Chair in China Studies, and Director, Project on Chinese Business and Political Economy, Center for Strategic and International Studies
Kirchberger, Sarah. Head, Center for Asia-Pacific Strategy and Security, Institute for Security Policy at Kiel University
Kleine-Brockhoff, Thomas. Vice President, German Marshall Fund of the United States
Koh, Swee Lean Collin. Research Fellow, Nanyang Technological University
Kuok, Lynn. Visiting Scholar, Paul Tsai China Center, Yale Law School
Lampton, David. Professor Emeritus and Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy Institute, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University
Lankov, Andrei. Professor, Kookmin University
Legarda, Helena. Research Associate, Mercator Institute for China Studies
Leonard, Mark. Director, European Council on Foreign Relations
Lodén, Torbjörn. Professor Emeritus of Chinese Language and Culture, Stockholm University
Mair, Victor H. Professor of Chinese Language and Literature, University of Pennsylvania
McGregor, Richard. Senior Fellow, Lowy Institute
Mearsheimer, John J. R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor of Political Science, University of Chicago
Medcalf, Rory. Professor and Head, National Security College, Australian National University
Nakayama, Toshihiro. Professor, Faculty of Policy Management, Keio Univerity
Naughton, Barry J. Sokwanlok Chair of Chinese International Affairs, School of Global Policy and Strategy, University of California at San Diego
Nilsson-Wright, John. Senior Lecturer in Modern Japanese Studies, University of Cambridge
Odgaard, Liselotte. Research Fellow, the Danish Foreign Policy Society
Oertel, Janka. Transatlantic Fellow, the Asia Program, German Marshall Fund of the United States
Otero-Iglesias, Miguel. Senior Analyst, Elcano Royal Institute; Professor of Practice in International Political Economy, IE School of Global and Public Affairs
Paderni, Paola. Associate Professor of the History and Institutions of China, University of Naples “L’Orientale"
Patey, Luke. Senior Researcher, Danish Institute for International Studies
Pei, Minxin. Tom and Margot Pritzker ’72 Professor of Government and Director, Keck Center for International and Strategic Studies, Claremont McKenna College
Perry, Elizabeth J. Henry Rosovsky Professor of Government, Harvard University
Pieke, Frank. Director, Mercator Institute for China Studies; Professor of Modern Chinese Studies, Leiden University
Piquet, Hélène. Canada Research Chair in Chinese Law and Globalization, Juridical Sciences Department, Quebec University in Montreal
Poggetti, Lucrezia. Research Associate, Mercator Institute for China Studies
Potter, Pitman. Professor of Law and Director, Chinese Legal Studies, Peter A. Allard School of Law, University of British Columbia
Raine, Sarah. Non-resident Transatlantic Fellow, German Marshall Fund of the United States
Rapp-Hooper, Mira. Senior Research Scholar in Law and Senior Fellow, Paul Tsai China Center, Yale Law School
Ratner, Ely. Executive Vice President and Director of Studies, Center for a New American Security
Reilly, Benjamin. Professor of Politics and International Relations, University of Western Australia
Rosen, Daniel H. Partner, Rhodium Group; Adjunct Professor, School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
Schell, Orville. Arthur Ross Director, Center on U.S.-China Relations, Asia Society
Segal, Adam. Director, Digital and Cyberspace Policy Program, Council on Foreign Relations
Shih, Victor. Professor, University of California San Diego
Shi-Kupfer, Kristin. Director, Research Area on Public Policy and Society, Mercator Institute for China Studies
Small, Andrew. Senior Transatlantic Fellow, Asia Program, German Marshall Fund of the United States
Stanzel, Angela. Senior Policy Fellow, Institut Montaigne
Storey, Ian. Senior fellow, ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute
Swaine, Michael D. Senior Fellow, Asia Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Szonyi, Michael. Director, Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies, Harvard University
Takahara, Akio. Dean, Graduate School of Public Policy, The University of Tokyo
Thayer, Carlyle. Emeritus Professor, University of New South Wales, Canberra
Tønnesson, Stein. Research Professor, Peace Research Institute Oslo
Townshend, Ashley. Director, Foreign Policy and Defense, U.S. Studies Centre, Sydney University
Trevaskes, Sue. Professor, Griffith University; Adjunct Director, Australian Centre on China in the World, Australian National University
Tsang, Steve. Director, China Institute, School of Oriental and African Studies
Wacker, Gudrun. Berlin-based senior researcher on Asia studies
Wasserstrom, Jeffrey N. Chancellor’s Professor of History, University of California, Irvine
Weidenfeld, Jan. Head of European Affairs and Business Strategy, Mercator Institute for China Studies
Wesley, Michael. Dean, College of Asia and the Pacific, Australian National University
White, Lynn. Professor Emeritus and Senior Research Scholar, Princeton University
Wright, Thomas. Senior Fellow, the Brookings Institution
Zenglein, Max J. Head of Program Economic Research, Mercator Institute for China Studies