The Chinese government blocked a U.S. Patent and Trademark Office employee from leaving the country, the State Department said on Monday, adding that it is "tracking this case very closely," and "engaged with Chinese officials to resolve the situation."

Beijing

A U.S. government employee and a Wells Fargo executive have been prevented from leaving China, according to confirmations from the U.S. State Department and Chinese authorities. The Wells Fargo executive, Chen Yu Mao, who was in China for business, is reportedly under investigation in a criminal case and is not permitted to depart the country. The bank has suspended all staff travel to China and is working to resolve the situation.

The U.S. government employee, identified as a U.S. Patent and Trademark Office staff member, was visiting China in a personal capacity and has also been subjected to an exit ban. The State Department is closely monitoring the case and engaging with Chinese officials. These incidents have emerged amid ongoing trade discussions between the U.S. and China, with officials noting that such exit bans could impact bilateral relations.

U.S. government employee blocked from leaving China

We turn now to developments out of China with the State Department confirming a U.S. government employee has been blocked from leaving the country. This comes as an Atlanta-based managing director at Wells Fargo has also been prevented from returning to the U.S. from China. CBS News foreign correspondent Anna Karan is following all of this for us and joins us now from Hong Kong. Good morning to you, Anna. What more can you tell us about both of these incidents? Errol, we don't have all the details. We'll be back and forth with the U.S. embassy in Beijing, but what I can tell you, let's start with that Wells Fargo senior executive. Her name is Chen Yu Mao. She's worked at the bank for the past 12 years, based in Atlanta. We know she was born in Shanghai, and we are waiting for confirmation as to whether or not she has U.S. citizenship. But she was in China for business and barred from leaving last week. China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs says that she is involved in a, quote, criminal case. She's under investigation and cannot leave the country for the time being. Wells Fargo says it's working through the appropriate channels to bring her home as soon as possible, but it has suspended all staff from traveling to China. The second case that you are referring to involves a U.S. Commerce Department official who is believed to have served in the U.S. military. Now, he was in China visiting family, and it's believed that the Ministry of State Security, which is the main intelligence and counterintelligence agency in China, stopped him from leaving back in April. But this case only came to light over the weekend. Now, MOFA refused to comment on the case, but we did hear from the State Department. Let me read you now some of that statement. We'll bring it up for you. It says, we can confirm that a U.S. patent and trademark office employee, while traveling to China in a personal capacity, was made subject to an exit ban in China. We are tracking this case very closely and are engaged with Chinese officials to resolve the situation as quickly as possible. Now, Errol, that statement goes on to say that U.S. citizens and other foreign nationals in China have been subject to these exit bans. They describe them as arbitrary and risk impacting the relationship between the U.S. and China. Yeah, and on that point, you've got this fragile trade truce between Washington and Beijing at the moment. Are these exit bans viewed as having any impact on that, or perhaps some type of leverage? For sure, and there are obvious questions about the timing of these exit bans, considering the U.S. and China are in the midst of a trade war. Admittedly, both sides have reached this preliminary agreement, which they agreed to back in London last month after escalating tit-for-tat tariffs. The deadline to reach an agreement is the 12th of August, and we heard from U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Besant yesterday, who said that talks with China will be held in the very near future. Now, do these exit bans throw a spanner in the works? We just do not know. China's Commerce Secretary, I should mention, said last week that China does not want a trade war but is not afraid of one. Now, as you mentioned, there are trade talks happening around the globe. The Philippines President meeting with President Trump in Washington today, and then there's a delegation from the European Union, including the European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, heading to Beijing on Thursday to meet with President Xi Jinping. This was supposed to be held in Brussels this year, but instead the Europeans are heading to China. We understand the Chinese are playing hardball in relation to tariffs, but we'll keep you posted on any developments there. Yeah. All right, Anna Cohen, with all the latest for us from Hong Kong, just approaching 7.10 in the evening there. Anna, thank you.

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Breakdown