Later that year Chinese authorities arrested Rio Tinto Iron Ore China operations head and Australian citizen Stern Hu, along with three of his Chinese colleagues on charges of bribery and stealing state secrets. This explosive development, which generated a diplomatic chilling between Australia and China, was linked to a stoush between Chinese authorities and the world's three big iron ore miners – Rio, BHP and Vale – over iron ore pricing. The Hu affair forced Rio to overhaul its marketing operations in China, while it also ramped up officially sanctioned Chinese alliances as a bridge-building exercise.