The State Department formally designated U.S. citizen Min Zin as wrongfully detained in China, escalating his case weeks before President Trump hosts Xi Jinping at the White House.
The State Department has formally designated a U.S. citizen held in China as wrongfully detained, escalating his case just weeks before President Donald Trump hosts Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House. Secretary of State Marco Rubio made the determination after reviewing the circumstances surrounding Min Zin's detention in Yunnan province, the department announced Thursday.
Zin, a Myanmar scholar and U.S. citizen who founded and leads the Institute for Strategy and Policy - Myanmar, was taken into custody June 3 while traveling to an academic conference at the invitation of the Chinese government. He has spent nearly 11 weeks in custody, subjected to repeated interrogations and held in isolation, according to senior State Department officials.
The designation makes Zin the second U.S. citizen the State Department considers wrongfully detained in China. He joins Dr. Youlin Chen, a Chinese-born American seismologist from Boston who has been held since November 2024 and was designated in March.
Assistant Secretary Dylan Johnson announced the move Thursday, saying the safety and security of U.S. citizens is the State Department's top priority. The department said it will continue advocating for Zin and calling for the release of all Americans arbitrarily detained or under exit bans in China.
Chinese authorities have accused Zin of engaging in espionage and endangering China's national security, though Beijing has provided few details. The Chinese embassy previously said his legitimate rights had been fully guaranteed.
The announcement lands weeks before Xi's anticipated September 24 visit to Washington -- his first state visit to the United States since 2015. Xi is expected to arrive late September 23, hold meetings at the White House on the 24th, and depart the following day, skipping the U.N. General Assembly in New York to keep his focus on the summit.
President Trump has made bringing detained Americans home a centerpiece of his foreign policy, and the administration says it has reunited more than 100 Americans with their families since he returned to office. Trump raised Chen's case directly with Xi during his state visit to Beijing in May, and Zin's case is expected to be on the table when the two leaders meet face to face.
Zin's family expressed gratitude to Trump and Rubio for moving swiftly to secure the designation, which makes his release a top U.S. priority and opens the door to intensified diplomatic efforts. Rights groups and hostage advocacy organizations have urged Washington to press Beijing for his release, with some tracking at least a dozen Americans they believe are unjustly held in China, including people under exit bans.
Advocates hope the designation shifts the dynamic before the summit, giving the administration a formal tool to press China on a case Beijing has dismissed as a routine law enforcement matter.
The wrongful detention designation does not guarantee a release, but it raises the political cost for Beijing and puts Zin's case squarely on the agenda for September 24. With Trump set to sit down with Xi in the Oval Office, the administration is signaling that detained Americans will be a central demand -- not a footnote.
For now, Zin remains in Chinese custody, and Chen remains jailed awaiting trial on espionage charges. The coming weeks will show whether Washington's pressure, backed by the summit stage, can bring either American home.
The State Department formally designated U.S. citizen Min Zin as wrongfully detained in China, escalating his case weeks before President Trump hosts Xi Jinping at the White House.
freedomlinedispatch.com
