Wife of US seismologist held in China says Trump will ask Xi to free him

WASHINGTON — The wife of a U.S. expert on North Korean nuclear tests who has been imprisoned in China since late 2024 said on Tuesday the White House has assured her that President Donald Trump will ask Chinese leader Xi Jinping to free her husband when the pair meet this week. Yufang Rong said she feared that Beijing planned to try her Chinese-born husband, Youlin Chen, on fabricated espionage charges even though his U.S.-funded research was openly published, used publicly available data and was done in collaboration with Chinese scientists. Trump will welcome Xi on Wednesday for their second meeting since May as the leaders of the world's leading powers seek stability amid tensions ranging from trade to Iran and Taiwan. Rong said she was assured during a Tuesday meeting at the White House with officials from the State Department and National Security Council that Trump would ask Xi to free her husband. Chen, 54, is one of two Americans held by Beijing that the U.S. has designated as "wrongfully detained," making their release a top priority. The other is Min Zin, a scholar arrested i