Blinken urges engagement with China post State Department hack.

The United States’‌ top diplomat is calling for increased diplomatic engagement‌ with China’s communist regime following a massive hack of State Department emails by China-linked cybercriminals.

Secretary of State ⁤Antony Blinken⁤ is determined to strengthen diplomatic ties‌ with communist⁣ China in response⁣ to⁤ the recent cyberattack that compromised hundreds of thousands of U.S. government emails.

To achieve⁣ this, Mr. Blinken announced that there will be more visits⁢ from ‌U.S. ⁤officials to‍ China and vice versa in⁣ the coming ‍months.

“I anticipate other cabinet members will be going [to China], and Chinese cabinet‍ members will be coming to the‌ United States,” ​Mr. Blinken said during a discussion at the‍ Aspen Security Forum ⁣in ⁤Colorado on July 21. “I think these contacts, these communications are essential and, in fact, it would be irresponsible not to pursue them.

“I have no illusions about where ⁣that goes,” Mr. ‌Blinken ‍added. “This is,⁢ in‍ many ways, the challenge of our time.”

Multiple Departments Hit⁣ by China-Linked Hackers

Mr.⁢ Blinken’s call for increased engagement with China comes ⁤in ​the wake of a significant cyberattack⁤ that targeted unclassified U.S. government emails.

Cybersecurity firms believe that many of⁣ the hacking groups ​responsible for these attacks ‍are backed ⁤by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which governs China as a single-party ⁣state. However, CCP ⁤authorities⁤ deny any involvement in state-sponsored hacking and ⁤claim that China is⁤ frequently targeted by cyberattacks.

According to Microsoft, the hackers exploited a flaw in their code and misused‍ one of⁢ their digital⁣ keys, allowing them to steal unclassified⁣ government emails. These cyber intrusions affected ⁢approximately ⁢25 ⁣organizations, including⁢ multiple government agencies, and went undetected for at least a month before being discovered in mid-June, around the time of‍ Mr. Blinken’s visit to Beijing.

The hackers⁢ gained access to the email accounts of ​various officials, including Commerce ⁣Secretary Gina Raimondo, ⁤U.S. envoy‍ to⁣ China Nicholas Burns, and⁢ Assistant Secretary ⁣of State for East Asian and Pacific‍ Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink, according ⁢to a⁢ recent Wall Street Journal report.

The State Department⁢ has not ⁤disclosed the specific details of the ⁤hack, citing security reasons. An ongoing investigation is being conducted to determine the nature and extent ⁤of the⁣ breach.

“For security reasons,⁤ we will not ⁣be ‌sharing additional information on the nature⁣ and scope of this cybersecurity incident‍ at this time,” a‌ State Department⁢ spokesperson told The ‌Epoch Times.

During a Congressional hearing, Mr. Kritenbrink stated that​ he⁢ could‌ not comment on the investigation but did not rule out the possibility that his emails were among ‍those compromised.

Mr. Blinken clarified ‍that only the unclassified ⁢email systems ⁣of the ‌department were affected in the breach but declined to‍ provide further details.

“I ⁣can say that the⁤ incident in question affected⁣ only our unclassified system,” Mr. Blinken said.

“We now