The State Department announced the release of Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung. A U.S. government official told NBC News the three were exchanged for two Chinese detainees.

The Americans were freed in exchange for a Chinese intelligence officer who was serving a 20-year sentence in the United States, officials said.

Americans Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung are en route back to the United States from imprisonment in China, the White House said.