No idea why US feels ‘so insecure’, says China

beijing — Beijing has no idea why the United States feels “so insecure,” a Chinese spokesman said on Wednesday, responding to an American government report singling out China as among the countries posing the greatest cyber threats.

The US remains the world’s top major power, with “unparalleled” military strength, foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters at a regularly scheduled news briefing.

“I have no idea why the US still feel so insecure,” Geng said.

“We hope the US will discard the zero-sum mindset, stop viewing big power relationship from the perspective of confrontation, follow the trend of times of peaceful development and work with Russia and China to jointly ensure the world peace and stability,” Geng said.

The US report also listed Russia, Iran and North Korea as posing major cyber threats. National Intelligence Director Dan Coats said Tuesday that the US must craft responses to minimize attacks.

US officials have accused China — including its military — of operating a sweeping hacking operation targeting the Pentagon, defense contractors and other targets. In addition to stealing secrets and intellectual property, the operations could also be used to attack the US financial system, power grid and other critical infrastructure in the event of a conflict. —