This article is from the source 'washpo' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/china-reluctant-to-join-us-in-punishing-north-korea-over-cyberattacks/2014/12/23/911c5418-1bac-4307-9119-32adac212568_story.html?wprss=rss_world
The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| China reluctant to join U.S. in punishing North Korea over cyberattacks | China reluctant to join U.S. in punishing North Korea over cyberattacks |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| BEIJING — China said Tuesday there was no proof that North Korea was behind a cyberattack on Sony Pictures Entertainment, signaling its reluctance to side with the United States over the incident, while also rejecting speculation it could have cut off Pyongyang’s Internet access as punishment. | |
| Asked about American requests for help from China to punish North Korea for cyberattacks, Hua Chunying, a spokeswoman for China’s foreign ministry, said the United States and North Korea needed to communicate directly. | Asked about American requests for help from China to punish North Korea for cyberattacks, Hua Chunying, a spokeswoman for China’s foreign ministry, said the United States and North Korea needed to communicate directly. |
| She said Beijing had not seen proof of who was behind the attack on Sony. “We need sufficient evidence before drawing any conclusion,” she said at a news conference. | She said Beijing had not seen proof of who was behind the attack on Sony. “We need sufficient evidence before drawing any conclusion,” she said at a news conference. |
| Administration officials had asked China last Thursday to block Pyongyang’s access to Internet routers and servers based in China, to expel North Korean hackers living in China and to pressure the regime of Kim Jong Un to end its alleged cyberoffensive against companies in the United States, according to one official. | |
| On Monday, North Korea’s Internet went dark for more than nine hours, but the question of who pulled the plug remained a mystery. While the U.S. government issued a coy nondenial that it might have been responsible, China categorically rejected media speculation that it might have been to blame. | |
| “This kind of reporting has no factual basis, it is speculative and pure assumption, it is not trustworthy at all,” Hua said. “And the reporting itself is irresponsible, nonprofessional, and misleading.” | “This kind of reporting has no factual basis, it is speculative and pure assumption, it is not trustworthy at all,” Hua said. “And the reporting itself is irresponsible, nonprofessional, and misleading.” |
| The attack on Sony has put Beijing in a difficult position. On the one hand, it wants to cooperate with the United States on cybersecurity and cyberterrorism, but on the other it does not want to alienate its allies in North Korea. | The attack on Sony has put Beijing in a difficult position. On the one hand, it wants to cooperate with the United States on cybersecurity and cyberterrorism, but on the other it does not want to alienate its allies in North Korea. |
| China says its Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in a phone conversation with U.S. Secretary of State John F. Kerry on Sunday, had reaffirmed China’s “unwavering position” on the subject, which Hua reiterated Tuesday. | |
| “China is against all forms of cyberattacks and cyberterrorism, including cyberattacks launched by any country or individual by using facilities beyond its own national borders against a third country,” she said. | “China is against all forms of cyberattacks and cyberterrorism, including cyberattacks launched by any country or individual by using facilities beyond its own national borders against a third country,” she said. |
| Bloomberg BusinessWeek quoted an anonymous source on Monday as saying China had agreed to start its own investigation into the incident, after that phone call. | Bloomberg BusinessWeek quoted an anonymous source on Monday as saying China had agreed to start its own investigation into the incident, after that phone call. |
| Liu Deliang, a professor and cyber-law expert at Beijing Normal University, said he doubted China would agree to such an investigation, arguing that Beijing was keen to first set up an international code of conduct and legal framework to govern the Internet, with an independent third party established to look into cyberattacks. | |
| But other experts said Beijing’s desire to be seen as a responsible power in global Internet governance means it might be willing to look into the attack on Sony. | But other experts said Beijing’s desire to be seen as a responsible power in global Internet governance means it might be willing to look into the attack on Sony. |
| “The conclusion that North Korea attacked Sony is based on inference. So is the conclusion that the United States attacked North Korea. The incidents have not been proved yet,” said Shen Yi, an associate professor in the School of International Relations and Public Affairs at Fudan University. | “The conclusion that North Korea attacked Sony is based on inference. So is the conclusion that the United States attacked North Korea. The incidents have not been proved yet,” said Shen Yi, an associate professor in the School of International Relations and Public Affairs at Fudan University. |
| “Tracking down attackers is always the most difficult task, because it’s hard to know if the IP address belongs to a ‘springboard’ or is the original source,” he said. “But if China wants to act like a responsible big power, of course it should cooperate with the U.S. to track down the attacker rather than acting passively.” | “Tracking down attackers is always the most difficult task, because it’s hard to know if the IP address belongs to a ‘springboard’ or is the original source,” he said. “But if China wants to act like a responsible big power, of course it should cooperate with the U.S. to track down the attacker rather than acting passively.” |
| Trust on cyberspace issues remains low between China and the United States. Earlier this year, the U.S. indicted five People’s Liberation Army computer experts on charges of spying on U.S. companies through cyberspace, prompting the Chinese to pull out of bilateral talks on cybersecurity. | Trust on cyberspace issues remains low between China and the United States. Earlier this year, the U.S. indicted five People’s Liberation Army computer experts on charges of spying on U.S. companies through cyberspace, prompting the Chinese to pull out of bilateral talks on cybersecurity. |
| Complicating matters further, there have been suggestions the Sony attack could have been routed through Chinese servers, just as an attack on South Korea’s banks is believed to have been last year. While China may not have been directly responsible, some U.S. experts say it is not doing enough to prevent such attacks. | Complicating matters further, there have been suggestions the Sony attack could have been routed through Chinese servers, just as an attack on South Korea’s banks is believed to have been last year. While China may not have been directly responsible, some U.S. experts say it is not doing enough to prevent such attacks. |
| But Yuan Shengang, CEO of private cyber-security company NetentSec in Beijing, said communication between the United States and China on cybersecurity had improved recently, after the earlier breakdown. | |
| Lu Wei, China’s top official in charge of the Internet, was in the U.S. this month, where he met U.S. officials in Washington and visited prominent technology companies on the West Coast. | Lu Wei, China’s top official in charge of the Internet, was in the U.S. this month, where he met U.S. officials in Washington and visited prominent technology companies on the West Coast. |
| There was a growing sense in China that cooperation between major powers was necessary to combat cyberterrorism, Yuan said. “For example, North Korea needs to go through China to assess the American Internet,” he said. “China can certainly help with the investigation into the cyberattack, by negotiation, communication, discussion even by bargaining.” | There was a growing sense in China that cooperation between major powers was necessary to combat cyberterrorism, Yuan said. “For example, North Korea needs to go through China to assess the American Internet,” he said. “China can certainly help with the investigation into the cyberattack, by negotiation, communication, discussion even by bargaining.” |
| But Yuan said it was “impossible” to imagine that China had helped North Korea to carry out the attack on Sony, especially since the relations between the two countries appear to have deteriorated during the past two years, and there was no “domestic political atmosphere” for such action. | |
| The original cyberattack was apparently revenge for Sony’s planned Christmas Day release of “The Interview,” a comedy starring Seth Rogen and James Franco that involved a plot to assassinate the North Korean leader. Sony has pulled the movie from its scheduled theatrical release. | The original cyberattack was apparently revenge for Sony’s planned Christmas Day release of “The Interview,” a comedy starring Seth Rogen and James Franco that involved a plot to assassinate the North Korean leader. Sony has pulled the movie from its scheduled theatrical release. |
| Liu Liu and Xu Jing contributed to this report. | Liu Liu and Xu Jing contributed to this report. |