China Confirms Return of 4 Nationals as 3 Americans Arrive in US

Harrison Li, son of detained American citizen Kai Li, speaks at a congressional hearing on Americans detained in China, in Washington on Sept. 18, 2024. Chen Lei for The Epoch Times

The Chinese regime said four of its nationals had returned home in a diplomatic agreement with the United States, which saw Beijing free three U.S. citizens previously imprisoned for years in China.

Mao Ning, spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry, said during a daily briefing on Nov. 28 that three Chinese citizens “have returned safely to China,” as has “a fugitive who fled to the U.S. many years ago.” The ministry did not identify the four.

The White House revealed the exchange on Nov. 27, identifying the three U.S. citizens released by China as Mark Swidan, Kai Li, and John Leung.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he spoke to the three Americans on Nov. 27 during their trip back to the United States.

“I told them how glad I was that they were in good health and that they’ll soon be reunited with their loved ones,” Blinken wrote on social media platform X.

On Nov. 29, President Joe Biden said he had talked to the trio after their flight landed in Alaska. “I’m really happy they’re home,” the president said.

The announcement follows China’s release of American pastor David Lin in September. Despite the exchanges between China and the United States, more than 200 Americans remain detained or subjected to coercive measures in China, San Francisco-based advocacy group Dui Hua Foundation said in a statement on Nov. 27.

Kai Li, a naturalized U.S. citizen, was detained in China in 2016. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2018 on espionage charges.

His son, Harrison Li, a Stanford student studying for a doctorate in statistics, issued a statement on Nov. 27 thanking Biden, the White House’s National Security Council, the State Department, and several lawmakers. He said his father was subjected to “wrongful detention” in China for more than 3,000 days.

“We urge President Biden to use the remaining days in his administration to bring home the remaining Americans held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad,” the younger Li said.

Swidan, a Texas businessman who was detained in China in 2012, was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve in 2019 after being charged with drug-related crimes. A Chinese court denied his appeal and upheld the ruling in April 2023.

His mother, Katherine Swidan, took to her Facebook page on Nov. 29 to announce that she had launched a fundraiser on GoFundMe, after learning of her son’s release.

“I am starting this gofundme because Mark left China with just the clothes on his back,” she wrote. “I need to send this out for him so he can buy clothes, winter wear, shoes, prescriptions, glasses. He literally has nothing.”

Katherine Swidan said her son has lost 100 pounds while jailed and “hasn’t eaten meat in 12 yrs.”

Lawmakers from both parties have since issued statements welcoming home the three Americans.

“This is a testament to the power of diplomacy,” Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said.

“The Biden Administration’s persistence in high-level engagement with the People’s Republic of China, despite partisan criticisms for doing so, has delivered results. Engaging Beijing—strategically, thoughtfully, and with clear-eyed principle—is necessary to advance America’s interests.”

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he couldn’t be happier for Mark Swidan’s mother, who “has spent 12 years waging an unremitting battle to ensure Mark’s release.”

“Negotiations aimed at securing the release of unjustly held Americans are among the most difficult and wrenching tasks that our diplomats face, and they have shown unceasing dedication culminating in today’s release,” Cruz wrote. “This joyous news would not have occurred, and these families would not have been reunited, without their work and commitment.”