China's Foreign Ministry said Harlan and Petersen had been released on bail and awaiting trial for illegally crossing people.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Canh Shuang confirmed on October 17 that the country arrested two US citizens Alyssa Petersen and Jacob Harlan in late September for allegedly smuggling people across the border.

Canh did not elaborate on the case, but said law enforcement forces arrested the two in accordance with the law and promptly notified the US side. The incident occurred in the context of Beijing and Washington straining on diplomacy and trade, but Canh Sang affirmed that "the incident was completely unrelated to the current China-US relations".

The US Embassy in Beijing said it had received information that two citizens had been arrested in China. "We are seriously responsible for supporting US citizens abroad and are monitoring the situation," the Embassy spokesman said on the same day.

China Horizons, the parent company of Harlan and Petersen based in Idaho, US, last week announced on Facebook that the two "were charged with bogus charges and their families are seeking national lawyers." to help bring them back ".

The American dispatcher that teaches English to Chinese schools says it will close later this month. "Unfortunately, due to the escalation of political and economic issues between the US and China, we cannot continue to bring teachers to China safely anymore," the company wrote on Facebook.