China blasts US and UK over 'slanderous smears' after they claimed Beijing hacked major global firms to steal secrets
- U.S. prosecutors yesterday charged two Chinese with stealing data from firms
- Beijing said it resolutely opposed the 'slanderous' accusations from Washington
- Britain also yesterday blamed China for a campaign of global cyber attacks
- China said Britain was 'fabricating rumours' and 'having ulterior motives'
China has hit back at US and UK after the two countries yesterday accused Beijing of hacking major firms around the world to steal secrets.
China's Foreign Ministry said today that it resolutely opposed 'slanderous accusations' from Washington after two Chinese nationals said to be linked to Beijing intelligence were charged with stealing confidential data from American government agencies.
Beijing also named Britain as it blasted U.S. allies, saying that Britain was 'fabricating rumours' and 'having ulterior motives'.
Britain blamed China for a campaign of global cyber attacks aimed at stealing business secrets from the UK and allied countries.
U.S. prosecutors have indicted two Chinese nationals on charges of hacking major corporations in America and around the world. Pictures of the pair are shown on a poster displayed during a news conference at the Department of Justice in Washington, DC yesterday
Alleged Chinese hackers Zhu Hua (left) and Zhang Shilong (right) are accused of stealing data from government agencies and 'a who's who' of major corporations in the United States and nearly a dozen other nations, in an indictment announced on Thursday by US officials
U.S. prosecutors yesterday indicted two Chinese nationals believed to be linked to China's Ministry of State Security intelligence agency on charges of hacking major corporations in America and around the world.
Prosecutors charged Zhu Hua and Zhang Shilong in hacking attacks against the U.S. Navy, the space agency NASA and the Energy Department and dozens of companies. The operation targeted intellectual property and corporate secrets to give Chinese companies an unfair competitive advantage, they said.
The pair were members of a hacking group known within the cyber security community as APT 10 and also worked for a Tianjin company Huaying Haitai Science and Technology Development Co, prosecutors said.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying today urged that the U.S. withdraw charges against the pair.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying (pictured) today urged US, UK and their allied countries to stop 'fabricating slanderous rumours' to avoid damaging bilateral relations
Ms Hua added that China had never participated in or supported any stealing of commercial secrets and had lodged 'stern representations' with Washington.
'We urge the U.S. side to immediately correct its erroneous actions and cease its slanderous smears relating to internet security,' it said, adding that it would take necessary measures to safeguard its own cyber security and interests.
It has long been an 'open secret' that U.S. government agencies have hacked into and listening in on foreign governments, companies and individuals, the ministry added.
'The U.S. side making unwarranted criticisms of China in the name of so-called 'cyber stealing' is blaming others while oneself is to be blamed, and is self-deception. China absolutely cannot accept this.'
Britain's Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt yesterday blamed Beijing for the 'one of the most significant' cyber attacks ever made against the UK and its allies.
Britain's Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt (left with the PM Theresa May yesterday) blamed Beijing for a campaign of global cyber attacks aimed at stealing business secrets from the UK
It is claimed that the 'sustained' campaign has tried to steal secrets from global companies based in Europe, Asia and the United States.
In addition, British spies are said to have assessed 'with the highest level of probability' that China is to blame for the hacking of corporate giants - warning the attempts to breach security are 'almost certainly' continuing.
Mr Hunt demanded the Chinese offensive action 'stop', warning they breach international agreements made at the G20.
Chinese Foreign Ministry said China would not accept and firmly opposed the smears made by Britain and 'other individual countries'.
'We urge these countries to respect the truth and stop the deliberate slanders against China in order to not to damage our bilateral relations and cooperation in key sectors,' said spokeswoman Hua Chunying.
The accusations of cyber espionage against China came amid mounting tensions between Beijing and Washington due to the arrest of the chief financial officer of Chinese telecom giant Huawei in Vancouver on December 1.
Political tensions between China, Canada and the U.S. have been escalating after Meng Wanzhou, the CFO of Huawei, was arrested in Vancouver at Washington's request. Ms Meng (pictured after being released on bail), 46, is one of the most powerful women in China
Meng Wanzhou, one of China's most powerful woman, was arrested in Canada at the request of the United States - a move that has enraged Beijing while it is engaged in a trade war with Washington.
Ms Meng is accused by the United States of misleading multinational banks about Iran-linked transactions, putting the banks at risk of violating U.S. sanctions.
She was released on bail in Vancouver, where she owns two homes, while waiting to learn if she will be extradited to the United States.
She is due in court on Feb. 6.
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