WashingtoncTypeface:> China has released three US citizens in what US media described on Wednesday as a prisoner swap.
“Soon they will return and be reunited with their families for the first time in many years. Thanks to this administration’s efforts and diplomacy with the PRC (People’s Republic of China), all of the wrongfully detained Americans in the PRC are home,” a US National Security Council (NSC) spokeswoman said.
CNN reported that the three men had been arrested for different reasons. One of them was arrested on drugs charges in 2012 and subsequently sentenced to death. He is reported to have suffered abuse during his time in prison. The broadcaster reported that the three had been released “in exchange for unidentified Chinese nationals.” According to CNN, a second man was arrested on espionage charges in 2016 and sentenced to 10 years in prison. The third individual was reportedly arrested in 2021, also for spying, and sentenced to life in prison. (DPA)