BEIJING - China is witnessing an increasing number of foreign women who have been cheated, kidnapped and smuggled into the country, a senior official has said.

Most of these women are from rural areas in Vietnam, Myanmar and Laos. They eagerly want to find jobs in China or marry rich Chinese men to escape poverty, Chen Shiqu, director of the Ministry of Public Security's anti-human trafficking office, told China Daily in an exclusive interview.

"The number of foreign women trafficked to China is definitely rising," Chen said, without disclosing how many women have been rescued by Chinese police nationally.