The diplomatic cable records Mr Bauert telling US officials that Rio's investigations had found no evidence the men had gathered information illegally or possessed Chinese commercial secrets. It noted Mr Bauert saying he visited Hu on August 31 last year and found him in good physical shape but deteriorating emotionally. "Hu complained that his arrest was politically motivated, inspired by the failed Rio-Chinalco deal, iron ore price negotiations and a recently announced BHP-Rio joint production deal," the cable attributed Mr Bauert as saying. In another US government cable from its consulate-general in Hong Kong in July last year, Australia's ambassador in Beijing, Geoff Raby, said the arrest of Hu and his colleagues had taken him by surprise and was a "complete mess".