Leung’s punishment was announced by the city’s Intermediate Court in a brief post on its social media page, but no information regarding the charges was provided. These investigations and trials take place behind closed doors with little or no information released.
Due to disagreements over trade, technology, human rights and China’s increasingly assertive stance on its territorial claims, relations between Washington and Beijing have reached an all-time low.
The sentencing comes as US President Joe Biden is on his way to Hiroshima, Japan, for the Group of Seven summit of major industrial nations. He will then travel to Papua New Guinea, a Pacific island nation where China is trying to expand its political, military and economic influence.
Although the Suzhou court made no mention of a connection to general US-China relations, the espionage charges are quite selective and supporting documents are withheld. In most countries, this is common practice if you want to secure your connections, networks and access to information.
However, China’s authoritarian political structure and the Communist Party’s total control over the judiciary, civil society and freedom of information preclude calls for more information as well as legal challenges.