China will prevent the CIA from conducting intelligence operations in the country after CIA Director William Burns said last week the agency has made progress in rebuilding lost agent networks, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said on Monday.
Mao Ning, the spokeswoman, said China’s government has seen reports of comments by Mr. Burns at the Aspen Security Forum last week. Mr. Burns told the gathering that the agency has made progress in rebuilding spy networks after losing most of its recruited agents in China beginning in 2010.
The CIA chief, a career diplomat, said, “We’re working very hard to make sure we have a very strong human intelligence capability to complement what we can acquire through other methods.”
Mr. Burns also commented on a major hacking operation traced to Chinese government hackers uncovered in June. The U.S. government alerted software giant Microsoft to the email compromises that included penetrations of email accounts at the Commerce Department and State Department.
Microsoft said the hackers were “nation-state” backed operators linked to the Chinese government.
The Biden administration declined to specify that the recent hacking originated from the Chinese government. But Mr. Burns said in Aspen he did not dispute Microsoft’s characterization of the hackers.
SEE ALSO: CIA rebuilding spy networks in China a decade after losing agents, director reveals
Ms. Mao told reporters in Beijing Mr. Burns’ remarks were “rather concerning.”
“China will take all measures necessary to safeguard national security,” she said.
Ms. Mao criticized the U.S. government for “spreading disinformation” about Chinese intelligence-gathering and cyberattacks while informing the public about “its large-scale intelligence activities targeting China.”
Meanwhile, Australia’s government revealed that a Chinese spy ship was deployed off the coast of Australia at the start of a major U.S.-Australia-led international military exercise known as Talisman Sabre 2023. The spy vessel was disclosed on July 21 by Lt. Gen. Greg Bilton, chief of joint operations for the Australian Defense Force, who said similar spy vessels had been detected before.
“They’ve done this for a number of years. We’re well prepared for it,” Gen. Bilton said during the opening ceremony of the exercises.
Talisman Sabre are taking place across northern Australia from July 22 to Aug. 4 and will involve more than 30,000 military personnel from 13 nations.
In addition to the two host nations, full participants include troops from Canada, Fiji, France, Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, South Korea, Tonga, and the United Kingdom. The Philippines, Singapore and Thailand are taking part as observers.
Chinese intelligence operations against the United States have remained at high levels for at least a decade, according to U.S. intelligence and security officials.
Last month, the National Counterintelligence and Security Center warned American businesses that new Chinese laws, including a counterespionage law that went into effect July 1, posed risks to U.S. companies doing business in China.
“These laws provide the [Chinese] government with expanded legal grounds for accessing and controlling data held by U.S. firms in China,” the center said in a security alert.
China‘s government and state media often accuse the CIA of spying in China and of working to foment a “color revolution” against the ruling Chinese Communist Party.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken and White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan recently said the Biden administration does not seek the overthrow of the Chinese communist system.
China also has launched a crackdown on American and other foreign companies in China that are viewed as spies seeking information in China.
• Bill Gertz can be reached at bgertz@washingtontimes.com.
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