China has arrested an American citizen for alleged espionage, the country’s government confirmed Friday, identifying the man as a political analyst for a policy think tank focused on neighboring Myanmar.
U Min Zin, a founder of the Institute for Strategy and Policy Myanmar (ISP-M), has faced “criminal compulsory measures,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said during a briefing on Friday.
Authorities are holding him on suspicion “of engaging in espionage and endangering China’s national security,” Lin said, without providing further details.
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The ISP-M says it researches political, resource and conflict dynamics in Myanmar, which was plunged into civil war by a 2021 military coup.
Some of the group’s publications detail Beijing’s influence in the region spanning the China-Myanmar border, where Beijing is accused of supporting armed factions that align with its national interests.
It is not clear if U Min Zin was conducting research at the time he was detained by Chinese authorities. His biography on the ISP-M website describes him as “a founding member and the Executive Director” of the think tank.
A person with professional ties to ISP-M, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case, told the AFP news agency that U Min Zin was arrested on June 3 at Kunming airport in Yunnan province, which borders Myanmar.
“He went there to attend a meeting,” said another person with a close relationship to the detained academic, who also spoke on condition of anonymity.
Chinese authorities said the U.S. consulate in Guangzhou had been notified of the case.
“His family and colleagues are following up with the consulate office there,” the second source said. “I know his family is worried.”
Neither the U.S. State Department, nor the ISP-M, nor the Chinese Embassy in Washington immediately responded to CBS News requests for comment on the arrest.
“We are aware of reports regarding a U.S. citizen detained in China,” the State Department told the New York Times on Thursday. “Whenever a U.S. citizen is detained, we work to provide the appropriate consular assistance.”
“China is a country under the rule of law,” the Chinese Embassy in Washington told the newspaper. “All foreigners living and traveling in China must observe Chinese laws, and those who violate the law and commit crimes will be held legally accountable.”
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The ISP-M is based in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai, a hub for political exiles from Myanmar since the coup ousted the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.
Analysts, including those at the ISP-M, say China has intermittently backed both Myanmar’s ruling military, and the rebels that military is battling in the country’s civil war, depending on its varying economic and security interests.
The arrest took place only a few weeks after President Trump attended a summit in Beijing with China’s President Xi Jinping. Mr. Trump called it an “incredible visit” and said “a lot of good has come of it.”