Jin Min-seok, Today Korea Reporter | President Xi Jinping promised President Joe Biden that China would not interfere in the November US elections.
On the 30th (local time), CNN reported that President Xi made this promise to President Biden during a summit held in San Francisco last November, citing multiple officials.
During a meeting in Bangkok, Jake Sullivan, White House National Security Advisor, and Wang Yi, a member of the Chinese Communist Party Central Political Bureau, reportedly had a discussion that was similar to the one they had last week.
During the November U.S.-China summit, President Biden expressed his concerns about China’s election interference to President Xi. Advisor Sullivan also raised the issue with Member Wang, reaffirming President Xi’s promise.
Such discussions seem to be a move by President Biden and Advisor Sullivan to reconfirm President Xi’s promise by repeatedly mentioning China’s election interference issues during the U.S.-China summit last November.
Currently, the U.S. has been on alert for the possibility of foreign institutions interfering in elections since 2016, when Russian intelligence agencies hacked and exposed the email account of Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential candidate.
According to intelligence agencies, since that incident, institutions in Iran, Cuba, and China have attempted to interfere in U.S. elections, but they have not reached the level of Russia’s ‘operations’.
Indeed, according to U.S. authorities, there were attempts from institutions in Iran, Cuba, and China to interfere in U.S. elections, but they did not reach the level of Russian operations.
Given the escalating U.S.-China conflict since the inauguration of the Biden administration, it is interpreted that the Biden administration took this preemptive measure to prevent further deterioration of relations.
CNN asserted on the same day that while China had initially responded passively to U.S. election interference compared to Russia, recent signs suggest that China’s attitude may become more aggressive.
CNN pointed out that “if any signs of China’s attempt to interfere in this year’s U.S. elections are detected, it will be a stumbling block to the relationship stabilization that the two countries have been painstakingly pursuing since last year,” and “despite President Xi’s promise, U.S. officials already see it as uncertain how well President Xi knows about the activities of vast Chinese national institutions.”
President Biden and President Xi were evaluated to have achieved substantial results in their meeting last November, drawing parallel lines on major issues such as bilateral relations, while confirming cooperation on the fentanyl issue.
Meanwhile, the U.S. and China are still fighting due to power struggles.
Indeed, the battlefield has recently expanded online, indicating a continuing the state of tension between the two countries.
On the 29th (local time), Reuters reported, citing sources, that the U.S. government has launched an operation to neutralize China’s hacking activities targeting the country’s major infrastructure.
According to the news agency, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have secured legal authority to block China’s hacking activities remotely.
It has not been revealed what specific authority it is, but the hacking group known as ‘Volt Typhoon’ is considered the top priority for neutralization.
U.S. intelligence agencies are reportedly assessing that the Volt Typhoon is receiving support from the Chinese government and is cyber-attacking major Western infrastructure such as military airports, internet service providers, and power companies.
By. Eugene Park
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