Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and FBI Director Christopher Wray announced a national security law enforcement action involving China during a Thursday morning press conference at the Justice Department.
This story will be updated with further details.
The action comes as China and the U.S. are embroiled in volatile trade negotiations. The talks have already been complicated by Canadian authorities’ Dec. 1 arrest of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou, one of China’s largest companies, at the behest of the Justice Department.
The DOJ has indicted several alleged Chinese hackers in recent years. The actions are part of a “naming and shaming” campaign meant to hold Beijing accountable for alleged state-sponsored intellectual property theft from and espionage on corporations. However, the accused hackers are rarely extradited to the United States to face trial.
Later Thursday, the U.S. and more than a dozen allies are expected to condemn China for its alleged economic and technological malfeasance, The Washington Post reported.
U.S. allies including Britain, Germany, Australia, Canada and Japan will reportedly join that condemnation. Companies or institutions in each of those countries have claimed to be the victims of attempted cybersecurity breaches by Chinese hackers.
New sanctions addressing China’s alleged cyber-chicanery are also expected to come Thursday, according to the Post.
