Chinese PM dismisses US hacking claims

New Chinese Premier Li Keqiang dismissed hacking accusations against China as “groundless” on Sunday and said his government was committed to strong ties with Washington.Referring to allegations that China’s military was behind massive hacking attacks on US entities, Li reiterated Beijing’s statements that China is a major target of global hackers and opposes all such criminal activity.“I think we should not make groundless accusations against each other but spend more time doing practical things that will contribute to cyber security,” Li said in his first news conference in his new role.Li is the highest-ranking official to comment on the hacking claims made by US cyber security firm Mandiant that provided a detailed picture of alleged cyber spying carried out by a People’s Liberation Army unit based in Shanghai.Li said that despite their differences, conflict between the world’s largest and second-largest economies is not inevitable as long as the countries respect each other’s major concerns and manage their differences.China’s new leaders “attach great importance” to relations that meet the “fundamental interests of people in both countries and serves the global trend of peace and development,” Li told reporters at the traditional premier’s news conference that follows the close of the annual legislative session.Plans to reform the controversial “re-education” labour camp system could be unveiled before the end of the year, Li added.The deeply unpopular “laojiao” system is largely used for petty offenders but is also blamed for widespread rights abuses by corrupt officials seeking to punish whistleblowers and those who try to complain about them to higher authorities. Speculation mounted before China’s annual parliament session that it was being earmarked for reform or even abolition, with calls for change from victims of the system increasing in recent months. But no changes have been announced.China-US ties have weathered a series of crises over the past year.While basically stable, political ties are seen as lagging behind the economic relationship, with two-way trade hitting almost $500 billion last year, and China’s new president, Xi Jinping, isn’t expected to meet President Barack Obama until an economic summit in Russia in September. source : Gulftoday