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                China Summons US Ambassador After Spying Charges

   by VOA News

   China has summoned the U.S. ambassador after Washington charged five
   Chinese military officers with conducting economic espionage against
   American companies.

   The official Xinhua news agency said Tuesday that China's foreign
   ministry lodged a "solemn representation" to Ambassador Max Baucus.

   China has rejected the criminal allegations, the first ever leveled by
   the U.S. against a foreign power for cybercrimes targeting American
   businesses.

   U.S. officials have accused a unit of China's People's Liberation Army
   of hacking into the computers of U.S. companies working in nuclear
   technology, solar power and the steel industry.

   The top U.S. prosecutor, Attorney General Eric Holder, said Monday that
   all nations engage in intelligence gathering. But he said the United
   States "categorically denounces" the military espionage that provided
   "significant" information for Chinese companies, including state-owned
   enterprises.

   "When a foreign nation uses military or intelligence resources and
   tools against an American executive or corporation to obtain trade
   secrets or sensitive business information for the benefit of
   state-owned companies, we must say, enough is enough," said Holder.

   China's foreign ministry denounced the charges as "fabricated" and said
   they would undermine trust between the two governments. In protest,
   Beijing said it is suspending the activities of a Sino-U.S. Internet
   working group.

   Jen Psaki, a U.S. State Department spokeswoman, said the United States
   regrets the action taken.

   "We regret China's decision on the suspension of activities of the
   working group. We continue to believe that dialogue is an essential
   part of resolving these and other cyber security concerns," said Psaki.

   Whether the five Chinese military officers ever stand trial in the U.S.
   is an open question.

   Holder said the U.S. is hopeful that Beijing "will respect our criminal
   justice system" and allow the accused military officers to be brought
   to trial.

   "It is our hope to have these people stand before an American jury and
   face justice," said Holder.

   Holder said the spying targeted five U.S. companies, including such
   well-known businesses as Alcoa World Alumina, U.S. Steel and
   Westinghouse Electric, as well as Allegheny Technologies and
   SolarWorld, along with the country's key steel workers' union.

   White House spokesman Jay Carney said the indictments reflect U.S.
   concern that China continues to engage in cybercrimes despite protests
   by the United States.

   "We have consistently and candidly raised these concerns with the
   Chinese government, and today's announcement reflects our growing
   concerns that this Chinese behavior has continued," said Carney.

   The U.S. identified the five military officers as Wang Dong, Sun
   Kailiang, Wen Xinyu, Huang Zhenyu and Gu Chunhui, all of whom face 31
   charges, each of which each carries a 15-year prison term.

   Wen Yunchao, a China Internet expert based in New York, told VOA's
   Mandarin service that he thinks the indictments are part of a bigger
   picture.

   "I think the criminal charges against Chinese officials can be
   considered as part of U.S. pivot to Asia policy. And of course, it
   could have something to do with the upcoming U.S. congressional midterm
   elections as well. It's not an isolated case," said Yunchao.

   The charges pit the world's two biggest economies against each other.

   The United States has an overall economic output that is twice the size
   of China's, about $16 trillion to $8 trillion annually.  But some
   analysts say that by other measures, China could within the year
   surpass the United States as the world's biggest economy.
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References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/china-summons-us-ambassador-after-spying-charges/1918158.html