Obama Wants “Some Answers” About Google Attacks

The recent attacks on Google.cn have left US President Barack Obama demanding answers from the Chinese Government.

As the rhetoric regarding the Google hacking incident gets more and more heated on both sides, President Obama has now stepped into the fray. Issuing a statement through White House Spokesman Bill Burton, President Obama reiterated Hillary Clinton’s calls for a transparent investigation, saying he wants “some answers” and that the perpetrators of the attacks should “face consequences.”

Obama’s remarks come on the heels of a sharp rebuke to Secretary of State Clinton’s remarks by the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

In response to Clinton’s comments, Foreign Ministry spokesman Jiang Yu said, “The US has criticised China’s policies to administer the internet, and insinuated that China restricts internet freedom. This runs contrary to the facts and is harmful to Sino-US relations.”

However, Obama’s statement makes it clear that while he has a strong interest in resolving the situation, he intends to defuse the situation. “As the president has said, he continues to be troubled by the cyber-security breach that Google attributes to China,” Burton said, adding that,“All we are looking for from China are some answers.”

China’s statement this morning makes it clear that they’re quite uncomfortable with the public nature of this incident. The statement issued this morning calls on the United States and Obama to “properly handle…sensitive issues,” a not-so-thinly veiled suggestion to handle this issue quietly. Put bluntly, though, there’s no chance this issue’s going to be settled quietly because of how public the argument has become.

As the president has said, he continues to be troubled by the cyber-security breach that Google attributes to China,” he said.

INTERNET ROW TIMELINE 12 Jan: Google says it may leave China after cyber attacks and calls for end to censorship of its search results 13 Jan: US says cyber attacks on Google “troubling” 14 Jan: China gives first reaction to Google statement: foreign firms welcome to work in China “according to law” 16 Jan: US says it will make formal protest over Google cyber attacks 21 Jan: China says its dispute with Google should not be linked to US relations 21 Jan: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton criticises China’s internet controls and urges Beijing to investigate Google attacks 22 Jan: China rejects Mrs Clinton’s criticism as “groundless” Timeline: China and net censorship

“All we are looking for from China are some answers,