The US government has banned American employees with security clearance and their associates from having romantic relationships with Chinese citizens while in China.

According to Peter Mattis, who previously worked as an analyst at the CIA, the Chinese regime exploits personal connections to gather intelligence, and even recruits ordinary Chinese citizens for this purpose.

The policy, which went into effect in January of this year, applies to all US personnel in China, including embassy and consulate employees in various cities in China.