Mark Swidan, Kai Li, and John Leung have been released from detention, a spokesperson for the National Security Council said.

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 three Americans released by Beijing are Mark Swidan, Kai Li and John Leung, all of whom had been designated by the U.S. government as wrongfully detained by China. Swidan had been facing a death sentence on drug charges while Li and Leung were imprisoned on espionage charges.