Reuters news agency says a Chinese court has sentenced a veteran Chinese journalist, who was detained after he met an official of the Japanese Embassy in Beijing, to seven years in prison for espionage.

Sources say Dong Yuyu was the deputy editor of the Guangming Daily's commentary section. The newspaper is affiliated with the ruling Communist Party.

Dong was detained by security authorities shortly after meeting with a Japanese Embassy official in February 2022. He was indicted in March last year on spying charges.

Reuters said a court in Beijing handed Dong the seven-year sentence on Friday.

The former journalist is known to people involved in Western media, as well as diplomats.

The Japanese Embassy official whom Dong met with was also detained temporarily by Chinese authorities, and the Japanese government lodged a protest against Beijing.

A number of foreign nationals and their Chinese acquaintances have been held in China on spying charges since the country introduced an anti-espionage law in 2014, causing international concern.

China's foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning was asked about the court decision at a news conference on Friday. She said, without elaborating, that China is a country ruled by law, and therefore penalizes criminal activities in accordance with the law.