Fox News reports that President Donald Trump intends to ask Chinese leader Xi Jinping to release Dr. Youlin Chen, an American citizen wrongly detained since November 2024. During an interview with Fox & Friends, the wives of two wrongfully detained U.S. citizens in China urged Trump to intervene in their husbands' cases. Dr. Chen's wife believes he was arrested due to his research into nuclear tests and seismic activities in Asia. The article highlights that Trump’s administration has secured the freedom of 83 U.S. nationals abroad in the past year, according to a report by the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-23,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Ahead of President Xi Jinping's visit to the United States in September 2024, Yufang Rong and Sylvia Zin, wives of wrongfully detained Americans Youlin Chen and Min Zin respectively, have intensified efforts for their husbands' release. Chen, a seismologist with expertise in North Korean nuclear tests, was detained by Chinese authorities outside Beijing’s airport in November 2024. His wife Rong has not spoken to him or seen him for over 670 days, causing significant emotional and familial strain.
Zin's husband Min Zin, arrested in June 2024, is a scholar focusing on Myanmar. The U.S. State Department designates these men as the only two American citizens wrongfully detained in China. Their families are hopeful that President Donald Trump will bring up their cases during his summit with Xi. Rong and Zin met with senior U.S. officials to advocate for their husbands' release, with the White House assuring them that Trump would address this issue directly with Xi.
Despite these efforts, it remains unclear if broader human rights issues, such as those concerning Tibet and the Uyghur Muslim minority, will be discussed during the summit, given Trump's general reluctance to raise such matters publicly.
Written for “US Citizens Detained In China” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 5 other(s) covering the same event.
President Donald Trump plans to ask Chinese President Xi Jinping to release wrongfully detained U.S. citizen Dr. Youlin Chen, the man's family told Fox News after his wife and the wife of another wrongful detainee spoke exclusively to Fox & Friends Wednesday.
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wife → plan → Fox
The wives of two wrongfully detained Americans in China made a plea for Trump to intervene in their husbands' detention during an interview with Fox News Senior Foreign Correspondent Gillian Turner.
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Trump → detain → Turner
Yugang Rong and Sylvia Zin implored Trump to intervene in the cases of their husbands; Dr. Chen, a seismic and nuclear researcher, and Min Zin, a scholar with a focus on Myanmar, respectively.
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Rong → implore → Myanmar
The pair are the only two U.S. citizens in China that have been designated by the U.S. State Department as wrongfully detained.
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that → designate → Department
He is the father of my son and we terribly miss him," Rong told Turner.
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Rong → miss → Turner
Chen was taken from outside the Beijing airport by Chinese agents in November 2024, according to a website dedicated to his release.
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Chen → take → release
After Chinese agents took him, they reportedly seized his cell phone, iPad, laptop and cameras and repeatedly logged onto his email accounts and accessed his devices.
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they → take → devices
His wife believes he was taken because of his seismic research into nuclear activity.
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he → believe → activity
He has been doing a lot of research on how to monitor nuclear tests," she told Fox & Friends.
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she → do → Fox
His research, according to the website, "focuses on the Earth's crustal structures in Asia using regional earthquake data, including data sourced from and in collaboration with earthquake scientists in China.
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research → accord → China
In one of his publicly available reports he used geophysical research methods to detect North Korean nuclear tests.
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he → use → tests
China charged Chen with espionage, but he has yet to receive a trial despite over two years of imprisonment.
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he → charge → imprisonment
He has not been allowed any contact with his family.
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He → allow → family
Sylvia Zin, meanwhile, does not understand why her husband, whose research focuses on military government and Chinese-Myanmar relations, was taken.
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research → understand → relations
He is an open source researcher, and all of his work is published on their website," Zin told Turner.
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Zin → publish → Turner
Both women made a plea to the president to intervene.
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women → make → president
"At this point, I think the president is the only person who can move ahead in this case and bring him home," Zin said.
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Zin → think → him
Zin also said she was hopeful that Trump would bring her husband home.
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Trump → say → husband
"President Trump has done a lot for us.
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Trump → do → us
He has personally been involved in this case.
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He → involve → case
I know whenever he [gets] personally involved in cases, Americans come home," Rong said.
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Rong → know → cases
The Trump administration has succeeded in securing the freedom of 83 U.S. nationals detained abroad in the past year, according to a report from the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation.
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administration → succeed → Foundation
Fox News' Gillian Turner contributed to this report.
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Turner → contribute → report
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