China Rejects Trump’s Election Data Theft Accusations

China has firmly denied President Donald Trump’s assertions that it conducted a massive operation to steal American voter data during the 2020 U.S. election.

Chinese Response

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian addressed reporters on Friday. “The U.S. allegations have no factual basis and are intended to vilify China,” Lin stated. He reiterated that earlier accusations of this nature had been proven unfounded.

Trump’s Accusations

In a speech at the White House on Thursday, Trump accused China of illegally accessing 220 million files with sensitive voter records. He described it as the largest compromise of election data in history.

U.S. Intelligence Assessment

Despite Trump’s remarks, a 2021 U.S. intelligence assessment found no evidence that Beijing influenced the 2020 election outcome.

China’s Position

Lin stated that China has never shown interest in, nor has it ever attempted to interfere in American elections. “By contrast, who has wantonly interfered in other countries’ internal affairs, conducted indiscriminate surveillance of governments, businesses, and the public worldwide over a long period of time, and compromised the cybersecurity of other countries on a large scale?” Lin questioned.

He urged the U.S. “to reflect on its own behavior, stop the unwarranted vilification of China, stop making China an issue in its elections, and behave in a manner more conducive to stable U.S.-China relations.”

U.S.-China Relations

Trump’s claims emerge at a delicate time for Washington-Beijing relations, which have been tense over various issues. These include military competition in the Pacific and a trade war, which intensified last year with Trump’s tariffs on goods from China and other countries.

Although Trump’s talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing in May did not yield significant concessions, both parties considered the summit a chance to reset the troubled relationship. Trump invited Xi to visit Washington in September.

The Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., and the White House did not immediately respond to separate written requests for comment outside of business hours.

This story is developing and will be updated as more information becomes available.