Washington says China will not let US government employee leave country
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- The U.S. State Department said on Monday that the Chinese government had blocked a U.S. Patent and Trademark Office employee visiting the Asian country in a personal capacity from leaving.
"We are tracking this case very closely and are engaged with Chinese officials to resolve the situation as quickly as possible," a State Department spokesperson said.
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is part of the federal Department of Commerce.
The individual's name and whether the person was detained were not disclosed.
The Chinese embassy in Washington and the U.S. Commerce Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Washington Post reported on Sunday that a U.S. citizen who works for the Commerce Department had traveled to China several months ago to visit family. The man was being prevented from leaving the country after he failed to disclose on his visa application that he worked for the U.S. government, the newspaper said, citing sources.
Beijing has used exit bans on both Chinese and foreign nationals in connection with civil disputes, regulatory enforcement and criminal investigations. Analysts say the tactic is at times used to crack down on local dissent and also as diplomatic leverage in disputes with other nations.
Washington and Beijing have had friction for years over tariffs, the origins of COVID-19, Taiwan and other issues.
Chenyue Mao, a Wells Fargo banker, has also been blocked from leaving China. Beijing's foreign ministry said on Monday she was involved in a criminal case and obliged to cooperate with an investigation.
Mao was the latest of several executives from foreign corporations to be stopped as they tried to depart China.
The U.S. bank suspended all employee travel to China after Mao's exit ban, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters last week, saying Mao was a U.S. citizen.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Japan Today
3 hours ago
- Japan Today
Top Trump aide accuses India of financing Russia's war in Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi attend a concert before an informal dinner on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia October 22, 2024. Alexander Kryazhev/ Host Photo Agency via REUTERS By Jasper Ward A top aide to President Donald Trump on Sunday accused India of effectively financing Russia's war in Ukraine by purchasing oil from Moscow, after the U.S. leader escalated pressure on New Delhi to stop buying Russian oil. "What he (Trump) said very clearly is that it is not acceptable for India to continue financing this war by purchasing the oil from Russia," said Stephen Miller, deputy chief of staff at the White House and one of Trump's most influential aides. Miller's criticism was some of the strongest yet by the Trump administration about one of the United States' major partners in the Indo-Pacific. "People will be shocked to learn that India is basically tied with China in purchasing Russian oil. That's an astonishing fact," Miller said on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures." The Indian Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Indian government sources told Reuters on Saturday that New Delhi will keep purchasing oil from Moscow despite U.S. threats. A 25% tariff on Indian products went into effect on Friday as a result of its purchase of military equipment and energy from Russia. Trump has also threatened 100% tariffs on U.S. imports from countries that buy Russian oil unless Moscow reaches a major peace deal with Ukraine. Miller tempered his criticism by noting Trump's relationship with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which he described as "tremendous." © Thomson Reuters 2025.
Japan Today
3 hours ago
- Japan Today
Chinese movie on Japan biological warfare unit to premiere Sept 18
Photo taken in Beijing shows a digital advertisement for a Chinese movie on the Imperial Japanese Army's notorious Unit 731. A Chinese movie on the Imperial Japanese Army's notorious Unit 731 will be screened from Sept 18, state-run media said, after its original release date last week passed without explanation. The new screening date falls on the 94th anniversary of the Japanese bombing of a railroad track near Shenyang -- an event that marked the start of the Manchurian Incident, leading to Japan's invasion of northeastern China. The Unit 731 movie, originally scheduled to premiere last Thursday, is one of war-themed works for release this year in China, which commemorates the 80th anniversary of what it calls its victory in the 1937-1945 War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression. Millions of people online have expressed their interest in the film about the unit, which according to historians conducted biological and chemical warfare research in China during World War II. Set in China's northeastern region, the movie conveys an anti-war message and reportedly aims to "reveal the crimes" of Unit 731 through a focus on ordinary individuals. The film, which will be shown after the July 25 release of a Chinese movie themed on a massacre in Nanjing committed by Japanese troops in 1937, is feared to fan anti-Japan sentiment in the country. Last Thursday, a Japanese woman was assaulted while walking with her child at a subway station in Suzhou, near Shanghai, sustaining a non-life-threatening injury. Chinese authorities later detained a suspect allegedly involved in the incident but have not provided the details, with Chinese media not reporting on the case. On Sept. 18 last year, a 10-year-old Japanese boy was stabbed on his way to a Japanese school in Shenzhen, southern China. He died from the stab wounds the following day. The Unit 731 film was made with the cooperation of an exhibition hall dedicated to the unit in Harbin in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang as well as local publicity departments of the ruling Communist Party. The unit's research is believed to have included lethal experimentation and testing on humans. Prisoners of war were secretly experimented upon to develop, among other things, plague and cholera-based biological weapons, according to historians. The Japanese government says it has not found any evidence confirming that the unit conducted experiments on human subjects. In 1997, Japan's Supreme Court, in a ruling concerning state screeners' objection to a history textbook's description of the unit's actions in China, said "the view had been established within academic circles to an undeniable extent that Unit 731 had killed many Chinese people through biological experiments." © KYODO
Japan Today
3 hours ago
- Japan Today
Brazil's Bolsonaro supporters protest against Supreme Court, President Lula
A drone view shows supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro taking part in a demonstration against the Supreme Court's measures in his trial, in Sao Paulo, Brazil August 3, 2025. REUTERS/Jorge Silva (Reuters) -Supporters of Brazil's former President Jair Bolsonaro, accused of plotting a coup after he lost the 2022 general election, gathered on the streets of several Brazilian cities on Sunday to protest against Supreme Federal Court (STF) Justice Alexandre de Moraes and President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The protesters called for "amnesty" for those involved in the alleged coup attempt days after Lula's inauguration in January 2023. Far-right leader Bolsonaro did not personally attend the demonstrations, but was put on the telephone by his son, Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, during the protest in Rio de Janeiro. The former president, who is on house arrest, wears an electronic ankle bracelet and cannot leave his home on weekends and holidays, as per an order from Justice Moraes. In March, a five-judge STF panel decided unanimously to put Bolsonaro on trial for allegedly conspiring to overthrow Lula. If found guilty in the court proceedings expected later this year, Bolsonaro could face a long prison sentence. Last month, Moraes imposed precautionary measures against Bolsonaro because he believed he and his son, Eduardo, an elected lawmaker who is now living in the U.S., had collaborated with U.S. authorities to try to interfere in Brazilian affairs. Last week, the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a 50% tariff on most Brazilian goods, citing a "witch hunt" against Bolsonaro. It also imposed financial sanctions against Moraes under the Magnitsky Act, which allows the U.S. to impose economic penalties against foreigners it considers to have a record of corruption or human rights abuses. Moraes is the reporting justice in the case in which Jair Bolsonaro is a defendant. In Sunday's protests, Bolsonaro supporters, wearing Brazilian national team jerseys, chanted "Magnitsky" and insulted Moraes and Lula. American flags and signs supporting Trump were also seen. © Thomson Reuters 2025.
