U.S.-China Talks Yield Pledge for a New Model of Cooperation
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/09/world/asia/obama-and-xi-try-building-a-new-model-for-china-us-ties.html?ref=global-home&_r=0
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. — President Obama and President Xi Jinping of China
wrapped up two days of talks on Saturday and said that they were building “a
new model” of more cooperative relations after 40 years of diplomatic ups and
downs.
Obama, Xi start 2-day talks / Leaders seek to ease tensions
on cybersecurity
http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0000292193
The Associated Press
RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif.
(AP)--U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping, treading
carefully, avoided a direct public confrontation on cybersecurity as they
opened a two-day summit meeting aimed at forging closer personal ties between
the leaders of the world’s largest economies.
Obama described the
contentious cyber issue as “uncharted waters.”
Obama said he and Xi discussed cyber matters only broadly
during their first round of talks, but pledged that a fuller discussion was
still to come. He said it was critical that the United
States and China
reach a “firm understanding” on cyber issues, but stopped short of accusing China of
orchestrating the hacking of the American government and business computers.
“Because of the
incredible advances in technology, the issue of cybersecurity and need for
rules and common approach for cybersecurity are going to be increasingly
important,” Obama said during an evening news conference with Xi on the grounds
of a sprawling California
desert estate.
Xi, who took power in
China in March, claimed no
responsibility for China’s
alleged actions. He said his nation was also a victim of cyberspying, but did
not assign any blame for the actions.
Hours earlier, with
temperatures surging above 37 C, the two leaders walked together under a shaded
walkway as they marked the start of their desert meetings. Underscoring the
desire for an informal summit meeting free of the formalities that mark
official state visits, Obama and Xi greeted one another in white shirts and
suit coats, but no ties.
U.S. officials cast the more relaxed California summit meeting as an opportunity for Obama and
Xi to hold more candid and free-flowing talks on the myriad of issues that
define the relationship between the two countries, including the economy,
climate change and North
Korea’s nuclear provocations.
However, it is
cybersecurity that has taken on increasing importance to the Obama
administration in its recent talks with China. Obama said advances in
technology have created a need for clear protocols about what is and is not
acceptable for governments to do.
“They’re going to
have similar concerns,” Obama said of the Chinese.
Pushing back against
the notion that the controversy over widespread government surveillance by the United States undercut his credibility to take
on China
over cybersecurity, Obama insisted the two issues were different. He said
concerns over hacking and intellectual property theft should not be confused
with the separate debate over how governments collect data to combat terrorist
threats.
“That’s a
conversation that I welcome,” he said.
China, too, has
major concerns about cybersecurity, Xi said, calling new technology a
“double-edged sword” that can drive progress but can also cause headaches for
governments and their regulators. Although he said China has been victimized by
cyber-attacks, he did not specify who may have perpetrated them.