Chinese human rights cases in limbo after Trump-Xi summit
Key takeaways
- Trump and Xi said they had discussed political prisoners in China, including Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai.
- Mingri is the founder of the Zion Protestant Church — one of China's largest underground churches — who was arrested in 2025.
- Lai, meanwhile, was sentenced in February to 20 years for foreign collusion and sedition over his ownership of the now-defunct, pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
Trump and Xi said they had discussed political prisoners in China, including Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai. Ahead of Xi's September visit to Washington, advocates are urging the US to apply more pressure on China.
https://p.dw.com/p/5EHTz Lai, 79, has been sentenced to 20 years behind bars [FILE: February 2021) Image: Tyrone Siu/REUTERSAdvertisement During his summit with China's Xi Jinping this month , US President Donald Trump said he had brought up two prisoners — Christian pastor Ezra Jin Mingri and Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai.
Mingri is the founder of the Zion Protestant Church — one of China's largest underground churches — who was arrested in 2025.