Trump urged to raise detention of US scholar Min Zin with Xi

September 24, 2026 at 06:25 PM2 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

Donald Trump has been urged to raise the detention of American scholar Min Zin during his meeting with Xi Jinping in Washington. Zin was detained at Kunming Changshui International Airport on June 3 while traveling to an academic workshop. Trump was also expected to raise the case of Youlin Chen, a Chinese-born American seismologist detained for nearly two years.

Key Facts

Min Zin was detained at Kunming Changshui International Airport on June 3 while traveling on a 10-year multiple entry visa at the invitation of a Chinese university.
Chinese authorities accused Zin of "espionage and endangering national security", while allies said there was no evidence to support those claims.
Trump was also expected to raise the detention of Youlin Chen, a Chinese-born American seismologist held in China for nearly two years.
Sylvia Zin told the House Foreign Affairs Committee that her husband was initially interrogated for four to six hours daily and she has "no idea" where he is being held.
Zin is a PhD candidate in the Travers Department of Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley and executive director of ISP-Myanmar.

Detention and Charges

Min Zin was detained at Kunming Changshui International Airport on 3 June while travelling at the invitation of a Chinese university to participate in an academic workshop. The US citizen was travelling on a 10-year multiple entry visa. Chinese authorities accused Zin of "espionage and endangering national security". Allies of Zin said there was no evidence to support those claims.

Advocacy and Family Testimony

Clare Robinson, advocacy director of Scholars at Risk, told Times Higher Education that governments across the globe used detentions to "suppress scholarly inquiry". Robinson said Chinese authorities have used such detentions to suppress dissent over the years, demonstrating that wrongful detention is part of a long-term campaign to silence those who question the status quo. Sylvia Zin told the House Foreign Affairs Committee that she had not been able to speak directly with her husband and learned about his condition through US consular officials who visit him. She said her husband was initially being interrogated for four to six hours every day and she has "no idea" where he is being held under investigation.

Academic Background and Research

A former student activist in Myanmar's 1988 democracy movement, Zin is now executive director of the Myanmar Institute for Strategic and Policy Studies (ISP-Myanmar). ISP-Myanmar is an independent thinktank that explores China's activities and strategic development in Myanmar, with Zin believed to divide his time between the US and Myanmar, as well as having a base in Thailand. Zin is also a PhD candidate in the Travers Department of Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley. Win Min, a policy adviser and researcher based in Thailand, said Zin was working on issues sensitive to China, including rare earth mining in Myanmar and China's role in Myanmar's political conflict.