Canada's Trudeau: Trump spoke to China about detained Canadians, pressure campaign is working

China detained the two men after Canadian police arrested Huawei Technologies Co Ltd chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou last December on a US warrant. Trump met Chinese President Xi Jinping at a Group of 20 summit on Saturday but said he had not discussed her case.

"I can confirm that Donald Trump has spoken to his Chinese counterpart on the question of the Canadians who have been detained in China," Trudeau told reporters in Montreal.

A Canadian government source, who requested anonymity given the sensitivity of the case, said the information had come from US officials. The US government was shut on Thursday for the July 4 Independence Day holiday.

Canada has been asking allies to raise the matter of the two men in their interactions with China, a pressure campaign that Beijing on Wednesday dismissed as ineffectual.

"Our approach - highlighting around the world the concerns that people have with the arbitrary detention of two Canadians by China - is working ... countries are concerned not just for (the) Canadians but for the challenges this poses to the rule of law and to the international rules-based order," Trudeau said.