China releases three Americans in prisoner swap

The Biden administration has secured the release of three Americans from detention in China in exchange for unnamed Chinese persons held in the U.S.

China released Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung after years of diplomatic negotiations between the administration and Chinese officials.

The U.S. government considered the trio to be wrongfully detained on bogus charges. Mr. Swidan had been detained since 2012 on a drug conviction, while Mr. Li and Mr. Lueng were accused of espionage.

Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer,  New York Democrat, said Wednesday he worked for years to release Mr. Li, a Long Island resident. He also credited President Biden for raising the detainees’ plight with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

“For the families of those Americans newly freed by the Chinese government, this Thanksgiving there is so much to be thankful for,” Mr. Schumer said. “Soon, Kai Li will finally be reunited with his family because President Biden and his Administration also kept the faith and never stopped working to secure Mr. Li’s release and the release of other Americans wrongfully detained by the Chinese government.”

The Congressional-Executive Commission on China in September said there are more Americans held in China than anywhere else in the world.

“Following the high-profile release of Americans unjustly jailed in Russia, attention to the cases of Americans imprisoned in China, many jailed for over or nearly a decade, remains a pressing diplomatic concern,” the commission said.