In September 2015, President Barack Obama hosted China’s Xi Jinping for a two-day summit in Washington. The leaders of the world’s two largest economies had much to discuss, from the war in Afghanistan, to nuclear security and military relations, to the prospect of cooperating on environmental and humanitarian issues. One of the most pressing issues at the time was cybersecurity. And the pair agreed they would work together to limit the damage done by cybercriminals. 

“The United States and China agree that neither country’s government will conduct or knowingly support cyber-enabled theft of intellectual property, including trade secrets or other confidential business information, with the intent of providing competitive advantages to companies or commercial sectors,” a White House fact sheet prepared at the conclusion of Xi’s state visit reads. 

It’s clear now, if it wasn’t before, that Xi had no intention of honoring his commitment.

Nearly six years later, the Biden administration has been forced to confront a range of cybercrimes carried out under the auspices of Xi’s Chinese Communist Party (CCP).