WASHINGTON (AP/1010 WINS) — Three American citizens—including a Long Islander—who were imprisoned for years by China have been released and are returning to the United States, the White House said Wednesday, announcing a rare diplomatic agreement with Beijing in the final months of the Biden administration.
The three are Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung, all of whom had been designated by the U.S. government as wrongfully detained. Swidan had been facing a death sentence on drug charges while Li and Leung were imprisoned on espionage charges.
“Soon they will return and be reunited with their families for the first time in many years,” the White House said in a statement.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he has been working with Li's family on Long Island for years to help secure the release of the Suffolk County resident.
"After nearly a decade of imprisonment by the Chinese government, Kai Li is finally on his way back to American soil and to freedom," Schumer said in a statement Wednesday. "Over the years, I have worked closely with Mr. Li’s son, Harrison, to speak directly to the highest levels of the Chinese and U.S. governments to advocate for Mr. Li’s release and safe return to his family in Huntington, New York."
"I look forward to welcoming Mr. Li back home to New York very soon," the senator said, adding that President Joe Biden's "personal engagement with President Xi made this joyous day possible."
A U.S. official said the Biden administration had raised their cases with China in multiple meetings over the last several years, including earlier this month when Biden spoke to Chinese president Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Peru.
Politico was first to report the men’s release.
1010 WINS contributed to this report.