⁍ Wall Street Journal: China warns U.S. it may detain Americans in China in response to Justice Department’s prosecution of Chinese military-affiliated scholars.

---

⁍ Paper said China’s message was the United States should end prosecutions of Chinese scholars in U.S. courts.

---

⁍ The White House referred questions to the State Department, which did not immediately comment.

---

– China is threatening to detain Americans in response to the Justice Department’s prosecution of Chinese military-affiliated scholars, the Wall Street Journal reports. According to the Journal, Chinese officials have issued multiple warnings to US government officials. The warning stems from the Justice Department’s prosecution of three Chinese nationals for allegedly concealing memberships in the People’s Liberation Army while applying for visas to conduct research in the US. China’s message is that the US should stop prosecutions of Chinese scholars in US courts, or Americans in China could find themselves in violation of Chinese law. The White House and State Department did not respond to requests for comment. A State Department advisory on travel to China issued Sept. 14 said the Chinese government uses arbitrary detention of US citizens and others ‘to gain bargaining leverage over foreign governments.’ The Chinese Embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment on Saturday. The Trump administration has increasingly accused China of suing cyber operations and espionage to steal US technological, military, and other know-how in a strategy to supplant the United States as the world’s leading financial and military power. Beijing denies the allegations. In July, the Justice Department said the FBI had arrested three Chinese nationals for allegedly concealing memberships in the Peoples Liberation Army when applying for visas to conduct research at US academic institutions. Last month, the United States said it had revoked visas for more than 1,000 Chinese nationals under a presidential measure denying entry to students and researchers deemed security risks. At the time, a State Department spokeswoman said the United States continued to welcome ‘legitimate students and scholars from China.’