China denies report it may detain Americans, says US mistreats its scholars

Huawei Technologies Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou returns, following a lunch break, to a court hearing in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on Sept 28, 2020. - Reuters

BEIJING, Oct 19 (Reuters): China denied on Monday that foreign nationals are under threat of arbitrary detention, following a newspaper report that Beijing had warned Washington it might arrest Americans in China.

The Chinese foreign ministry said it was Washington that was mistreating foreign citizens, accusing the United States of "outright political repression" of Chinese academics.