China detains US scientist who studied North Korea nuclear tests

The treaty seeks to ban all nuclear explosion tests on Earth, but several "nuclear-capable" states have not ratified it yet. Among them are the US and China, which have both established voluntary moratoriums against explosive nuclear testing.In June 2020, during Donald Trump's first presidency, his administration accused Beijing of conducting a covert underground nuclear test at the Lop Nur facility in the country's north-west. China dismissed the claims as unfounded and politically motivated.The Foley Foundation, another US-based hostage advocacy group, said Chen's health is a concern, noting that he suffers from diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol."He needs reliable access to treatment and care that is not available while he is unjustly incarcerated," the group said.US Senator Edward Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat, said Beijing's "treatment of Chen has undermined [its] partnership [with the US] and may deter other academics from engaging with their colleagues in China"."It is my hope that increased attention on his unjust detention will force the Chinese government to do the right thing and release Chen," he wrote in a statement published on Tuesday.Details around Chen's detention came a month after China confirmed that it had arrested another US scholar, Min Zin, director at a Myanmar-focused think tank.Beijing has accused Min Zin of spying and endangering Chinese national security.