China firmly opposes US using 'cybersecurity' to smear China: spokesperson

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson on Tuesday accused the United States of repeatedly using "cybersecurity" as an excuse to smear China for its geopolitical agenda, saying China is strongly dissatisfied with and firmly opposes this.

Spokesperson Lin Jian made the remarks at a daily news briefing, in response to media reports that the United States and Paraguay had detected infiltration into the Paraguayan government's cyber systems, which they said was linked to China.

Lin made it clear that China is against hacking and combats it in accordance with the law. Meanwhile, China is firmly against politically-motivated disinformation concerning cybersecurity.

The United States has long engaged in systemic global cyber attacks and made other countries join it in slandering China on cybersecurity, only to advance its own geopolitical agenda, Lin said, adding China strongly deplores and firmly rejects this.

"We urge those countries not to be used as geopolitical tools and accomplice of the U.S. government in spreading the 'Chinese cyber attack' disinformation," he said.