Hagel Warns China on ‘Growing Threat’ of Cyberattacks

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel addresses strong concerns over growing Chinese cyberattacks against the U.S. at the on-going annual Asia Security Summit of the International Institute of Strategic Studies in Singapore- The Shangri-La Dialogue. He called on America and its allies to “establish international norms of responsible behavior in cyberspace," especially as earlier this week leaked report from the Pentagon Chinese hackers having had access to secret US weapons programmes hit the news.

In the same gesture, Mr. Hagel stressed that more talks between American and Chinese militaries are essential for building trust and reducing the risk of mistrust. The U.S. and China dialogues have been remarkably direct at this Summit as Chinese delegate immediately challenged Mr. Hagel's comments. Major General Yao Yunzhu said that she was not convinced - and China was not convinced - that the U.S. wanted a "comprehensive" relationship with China, and "the new United States policy in Asia and the Pacific amounts to containment of China."

In addition, it is also very interesting to see Mr. Hagel's stress on the role of new technologies on the U.S.'s re-approach to Asia - the Obama administration's "Asia pivot." He said that the U.S. will keep its "decisive military edge." Lastly, the article also talks about the printing of a new South China Sea map by China that redesignates the nine-dash line as its national boundary, in accordance with Chinese law, which a recent Pentagon report said they "did not comport" with the UNCLOS.

It is also worth-noticing that Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung of Vietnam, which involves in a long territorial disputes with China over the Islands in South China Sea, gave a "feisty" opening address that drew big attention from international media. He stressed that the repeatedly lamenting lack of trust between China and its neighbors, between China and the U.S. has paved way for rising regional tensions. Mr. Nguyen said that regional organizations are supposed to take care of such tensions but "the missing strategic trust in implementing arrangements" has undermined their efforts.

It will be interesting to watch the connections of Shangri-La Dialogue with the meeting between China's new President Xi Jinping and President Obama at a summit in California next week.

Read more at: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/02/world/asia/hagel-reassures-asian-allies.html?ref=global-home&_r=0

By Yen Do