A Chinese-born U.S. citizen and seismologist faces spying charges in China for detecting and analyzing North Korean nuclear tests.
Reuters reported that Youlin Chen, 54, has been detained for two years in China and is expected to be tried on spying charges, potentially facing life in prison.
Eric Lebson, a former U.S. national security official whose hostage advocacy organization, Global Reach, is advising Chen’s family, told Reuters that Chen was employed as a U.S. government contractor.
However, Lebson told the wire service that Chen did not have a security clearance, and he did not perform classified research. Rather, he researched North Korean test blast seismic waves for the State Department and the Air Force Research Laboratory. The information he used is publicly available and viewable on the internet.
Chen lived in Boston and was arrested in China in November 2024, as he planned to head home after lecturing at two universities, Reuters reported.
Reuters reported that Secretary of State Marco Rubio designated Chen as wrongfully detained on March 19. Chen’s wife, Yufang Rong, told Reuters that it was not publicly announced due to diplomatic efforts to free him.
In September 2025, President Trump issued an executive order meant to strengthen the U.S. response to what it considers to be the wrongful detention of citizens.
The order lays out potential actions that can be taken once a designation is made, including imposing sanctions, imposing travel restrictions, restricting assistance to the country, and restricting the sending of certain goods and materials to the country.
According to Reuters, the U.S. has sought to not escalate the situation by implementing any of the measures. Rather the U.S. has sought to apply diplomatic pressure. Rong told the wire service that President Trump brought up Chen’s detention to Chinese leader Xi Jinping when the two met.
The outlet added that the administration did not confirm what Rong told them, saying that Xi and Trump have a “very good personal relationship. This is one of many facets in the U.S.-China relationship. No one issue is defining.”
