In a virtual meeting with China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen expressed serious concern regarding alleged malicious cyber activities perpetrated by actors sponsored by the People’s Republic of China, Reuters reports.
The meeting comes after a major breach at cybersecurity contractor BeyondTrust, which affected a number of the Treasury Department’s computers.
The meeting covered topics including cybersecurity, economic policies, and the U.S.-China relationship, according to a statement from the Department. They touched on progress that was made by economic and financial working groups that were established to improve communications between the two countries. Yellen took the opportunity to raise concerns about repeated cyberattacks by China-linked actors, non-market practices and policies being undertaken by China as well as industrial overcapacity, and how these actions could damage the two countries’ bilateral economic relationship and derail the working groups’ efforts. Yellen also warned that Chinese firms found to have provided material support to Russia in its war against Ukraine would face significant consequences, the statement read.
