{"id":11455,"date":"2026-05-15T22:24:16","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T22:24:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sawahsolutions.com\/range\/trump-says-he-and-xi-talked-us-chinese-cyberattacks-spying\/"},"modified":"2026-05-15T22:24:16","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T22:24:16","slug":"trump-says-he-and-xi-talked-us-chinese-cyberattacks-spying","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sawahsolutions.com\/range\/trump-says-he-and-xi-talked-us-chinese-cyberattacks-spying\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump says he and Xi talked US, Chinese cyberattacks, spying"},"content":{"rendered":"
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President Donald Trump said on Friday that he and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed cyberattacks and espionage activities carried out by both nations during their bilateral meeting this week.<\/p>\n

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One during his return flight to the United States, Trump, when asked if he raised the topics in their discussions, said, \u201cI did. And he talked about attacks that we did in China. Y\u2019know, what they do, we do too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re talking about the spying. Well, we do it too,\u201d he said. \u201cWe spy like hell on them too.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI told him, \u2018We do a lot of stuff to you that you don\u2019t know about and you\u2019re doing things to us that we probably do know about,\u2019\u201d Trump added.<\/p>\n

The president didn\u2019t describe specific cyber campaigns that were discussed. China has made waves in recent years for its sweeping intrusions into telecommunications systems, government agencies and other infrastructure in the U.S. and around the world.<\/p>\n

U.S. officials say the\u00a0Volt Typhoon group has\u00a0burrowed into critical infrastructure systems, such as power grids and water treatment plants, to be able to disrupt or sabotage them\u00a0if China invades Taiwan.<\/p>\n

Asked about these intrusions, Trump said, \u201cWell, you don\u2019t know that. I mean, I\u2019d like to see it, but it\u2019s very possible that they do.\u201d<\/p>\n

The remarks offer a rare public acknowledgment of U.S. clandestine efforts\u00a0to monitor Chinese officials and networks. Intelligence agencies such as the NSA and CIA use covert tools, capabilities, and secret partnerships to track foreign adversaries.<\/p>\n

CIA officials have said they have\u00a0used video campaigns\u00a0to recruit\u00a0Chinese officials as intelligence assets.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s remarks also reveal a notable diplomatic posture on the issue, particularly given how difficult cyber operations can be to publicly attribute or verify.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Chinese officials routinely deny allegations of hacking and espionage, though Trump\u2019s description of his conversation with Xi appeared to suggest some acknowledgment from Beijing that it has sought to infiltrate U.S. computer networks and recruit American assets of its own.<\/p>\n

The White House and the Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n

Suspected Chinese spies sought out a former senior State Department officer late last year, requesting they draft an assessment of U.S. policy priorities in Venezuela in exchange for payment, Nextgov\/FCW<\/em> reported in January. Such recruitment efforts have resurfaced amid a wave of departures from the federal government over the last year, as the administration has pursued various measures to shrink the federal workforce.<\/p>\n

In Trump\u2019s second term, U.S. officials have been seeking a more hardened approach against foreign hackers and cybercriminal groups. In doing so, they have created a budding market for offensive cyber capabilities that government and industry are still grappling with. Offensive cyber operations would be among the tools the administration plans to use against groups deemed threats to the United States,\u00a0according to a counterterrorism strategy released earlier this month.\n\n<\/svg><\/p>\n<\/div>\n