US President Barack Obama has lashed out at new Chinese cyber security regulations, elevating the increasingly contentious issue to the top of the two countries’ bilateral agenda.
“This is something that I’ve raised with President Xi [Jinping],” Mr Obama said in an interview with Reuters. “We have made it very clear to them that this is something they are going to have to change if they are to do business with the United States.”
Over recent weeks, US and European corporate executives have expressed alarm over two new pieces of Chinese legislation targeting telecom companies, internet service providers and banks. Both are still in the drafting process, but could begin to take effect this month.