The Chinese government has warned Washington it may detain Americans in China in response to the Justice Department’s prosecution of Chinese military-affiliated scholars, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday.
The newspaper, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter, said Chinese officials had issued repeated warnings through multiple channels to U.S. government officials.
The paper said China’s message was the United States should end prosecutions of Chinese scholars in U.S. courts, or Americans in China could find themselves in violation of Chinese law.
A State Department advisory on Sept. 14 warning against travel to China said the Chinese government uses arbitrary detention and exit bans for U.S. citizens and others to gain bargaining leverage over foreign governments.
The White House referred questions to the State Department, which said in an emailed statement that it stresses to the Chinese government – including at the highest levels – our concern about China’s coercive use of exit bans on U.S. citizens and citizens of other countries, and will continue to do so until we see a transparent and fair process.
