China has detained two Japanese citizens suspected of smuggling items prohibited from import or export, a Japanese official said Wednesday, in a case reportedly linked to rare earths, critical materials that are largely controlled by Beijing.
Japans's Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara told reporters in Tokyo that Japanese consular offices in Shenyang and Dalian were notified by the Chinese customs authorities that the two Japanese nationals were detained, one on May 18 and another one a week later, “in the same alleged case.”
