Commentary: U.S. wronging of China for cyber breaches harm mutual trust

Out of ulterior motives, some U.S. media and politicians have developed a habit of scapegoating China for any alleged cyber attack on the United States. Such groundless accusations would surely harm mutual trust between the two big powers of today's world.

A new wave of China-bashing is currently surging to a new height in the United States, including a latest accusation against China for hacking U.S. federal computer networks to steal personnel information.

Without any proof, some U.S. media jumped to a conclusion that the hacking was done by hackers based in China. After the breach was defined as a national security matter, the U.S.investigators have been probing China as a "possible culprit".

Cyber attacks, usually conducted anonymously and across borders, are hard to trace back. It is neither responsible nor scientific to always use vague terms such as "likely" or "suspected" before conducting thorough investigations.

The fact is that China is a victim of cyber attacks, and that Uncle Sam, who possesses the most advanced and powerful cyber technology, and more importantly, has self-proclaimed as world police, has been easily a big hacker at home and abroad.

The U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) has been intercepting Internet communications from U.S. residents without getting court-ordered warrants since 2012, according to latest disclosures published Thursday on The New York Times.

The collected information ranges from private emails to trade secrets and business dealings, according to the reports, based on leaks from Edward Snowden, the former NSA contractor.

The NSA also targeted suspected hackers before it could establish links to foreign governments, the disclosures said.

The United States always plays the trick of a thief crying "stop thief!" While it has rarely made direct response to widespread concerns over appalling revelations of its cyber spying programs, some of its people, out of ulterior motives, habitually scapegoat and demonize China, repeatedly levelling groundless allegations and accusations against China.

Such moves undermine mutual trust and respect between the two countries, a cornerstone of building a new model of major-country relationship, a consensus reached between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama in June 2013.

China firmly opposes and fights all forms of hacker attacks, and is ready to carry out international cooperation on this issue in efforts to help build a peaceful, secure, open and cooperative cyber space.

The United States should discard suspicions, refrain from groundless accusations, show more trust and conduct more cooperation in this area. Endi