Australian arrested in China for 'espionage': foreign minister

An Australian academic has been arrested in China on suspicion of "espionage", foreign minister Marise Payne said Tuesday, in a development sure to deepen tensions between the two countries.

Yang Hengjun had been held in Beijing for several months without charge, but Payne said the author and scholar had been formally arrested on 23 August.

"We have serious concerns for Dr Yang's welfare, and about the conditions under which he is being been held," she said in a statement.