Mr. Hague said that more than a week after he was informed of the case and instructed officials to seek a probe, on Feb. 15, the deputy head of mission of the British Embassy in Beijing met officials from the consulardepartmentof the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs to convey the message.
The Departmentof Foreign Affairs said it was providing consular assistance to the family and was in close contact with its international partners and a wide range of other contacts in order to establish the facts of the situation.