Washington DC, Aug. 20 -- The United States on Thursday designated US citizen and Myanmar academic Min Zin as "wrongfully detained" by China, following his detention in Yunnan in June while he was travelling to attend an academic conference at the invitation of the Chinese government.

In a statement, US Assistant Secretary of State Dylan Johnson said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had determined that Zin was being wrongfully detained after an extensive review of the circumstances surrounding his June 3 detention.

"Secretary Rubio has determined that U.S. citizen Min Zin is wrongfully detained in China," Johnson said.

He said Zin had travelled to Yunnan to attend an academic conference when he was detained.

With the designation, Zin...