US government employee barred from leaving China, Washington says

According to Washington, a representative from the US government has been told not to leave China after making a personal trip there.

The US Department of State said on Monday that the employee of the US Patent and Trademark Office, a division of the US Department of Commerce, was subject to an “exit ban” while “visiting China in a personal capacity.

A State Department spokesman said in a statement that “the Department of State has no higher priority than the safety and security of American citizens.”

“We are closely monitoring this case and working with Chinese officials to resolve it as quickly as possible.”

The US Commerce Department’s employee was barred from leaving China after failing to disclose his work for the government on a visa application, according to The Washington Post on Sunday.

The employee had visited family in China several months ago, according to the report, which cited four unnamed individuals with knowledge of the situation.

The man, a naturalized US citizen, was detained in Chengdu, Sichuan, in April over “actions Beijing deemed harmful to national security,” according to the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post on Sunday.

An unnamed “source familiar with the matter” was cited in the Post’s report.

Guo Jiakun, a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who told journalists he had “no details to share” about the case, made remarks that were reported to Al Jazeera by the Chinese Embassy in Washington, DC.

At a regular press briefing, Guo stated that “China upholds the rule of law and conducts entry and exit matters in accordance with the law.”

Beijing on Monday announced it had halted the departure of a US citizen employed by Wells Fargo, prompting Washington’s confirmation of the exit ban.

Chenyue Mao, a managing director with the Atlanta office, was given an exit ban, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s statement.

Beijing and Washington have long exchanged allegations of meddling in one another’s domestic affairs.

A Chinese-born US researcher admitted to stealing trade secrets, including blueprints for infrared sensors used to track ballistic missile launches, on Monday, according to the US Department of Justice.

Chenguang Gong, a dual US citizen, was accused of transferring more than 3,600 company files to his personal storage devices while working for a research and development company in Los Angeles.