The U.S. government is "watching very closely" the trial of Chicago Tribune reporter Paul Salopek in Sudan, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said on Monday.

Salopek, 44, was arrested on Aug. 6. He was charged in a Sudanese court on Saturday with espionage, passing information illegally, writing "false news" and entering the African country without a visa.

"We would hope that any judicial process be fair, speedy and transparent, and it's something that we are watching very closely, " McCormack said.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Jendayi E. Frazer, who was on a mission to end the violence in Darfur, has raised with Sudanese Foreign Minister Lam Akol the arrest of Salopek, U.S. officials said.

Source: Xinhua