3 wrongfully detained Americans released by China ahead of Trump taking office

According to Fox News, the Trump doctrine is already working, as evidenced by China's release of three wrongfully detained American prisoners on Wednesday.

"We are pleased to announce the release of Mark Swidan, Kai Li, and John Leung from detention in the People’s Republic of China," a National Security Council spokesperson said. "Soon they will return and be reunited with their families for the first time in many years. Thanks to this Administration’s efforts and diplomacy with the PRC, all of the wrongfully detained Americans in the PRC are home."

Of course, the Biden administration will take credit for the release, but at least one of the prisoners had been detained for over a decade.

Mark Swidan of Texas was detained for being part of an alleged drug trafficking ring when he was in China to look for flooring to use in his construction business.

The arrests

His driver and translator were arrested for allegedly possessing drugs, but the United Nations determined that Swidan was not in possession of any drugs and was not even in China when the offenses allegedly occurred.

Furthermore, the 11 other people arrested with him as part of the alleged ring could not identify him, but he was still convicted because he visited a factory that was previously used to make methamphetamine.

Li was arrested in 2016 when he went to China to attend a memorial service for his mother. He wasn't even allowed to get off the plane. He was accused of espionage and stealing state secrets.

Leung was detained in 2021 and also convicted of espionage in 2023 even though his friends said he was doing charity work with low income people in China and also organized musician tours there.

Cruz reacts

Texas Senator Ted Cruz (R) said of the release, "I am overjoyed that Mark Swidan, Kai Li, and John Leung have been released and are returning to their families. I could not be happier for Mark’s mother Katherine Swidan, who from her home in Luling, Texas, has spent 12 years waging an unremitting battle to ensure Mark’s release and make today a reality."

"President Biden, Secretary of State Blinken, Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Carstens, Ambassador Burns, and their teams have for years worked tirelessly to secure this achievement, and I am deeply grateful for all their efforts," Cruz continued.

"Negotiations aimed at securing the release of unjustly held Americans are among the most difficult and wrenching tasks that our diplomats face, and they have shown unceasing dedication culminating in today’s release. This joyous news would not have occurred, and these families would not have been reunited, without their work and commitment," he added.

U.S. pastor David Lin was also freed in September after spending almost 20 years detained in China.

Lin was sentenced to life in prison for "contract fraud," but was thought to have been detained for doing missionary work without being sanctioned by the state. He is now 68 years old.

"Before his imprisonment, Pastor Lin was active in Beijing’s house church movement, which has long-faced hostility from Chinese authorities," the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) said in a 2019 statement. "House churches are independent of state-sponsored religious organizations, and those who participate in and lead house churches often face intimidation, harassment, arrest, and harsh sentences."