'China threat' theory rejected

Chinese scholars yesterday rebutted US's allegations that China was engaged in spying and forging secret nuclear deals with foreign countries, saying these were induced by the perceived "China threat" worrying Washington.

US politicians have been debating the country's foreign and military strategy shifts in the wake of the financial crisis, and some took the opportunity to play up the "threat" posed by China for their own gains, experts in Beijing said.

The Wall Street Journal, quoting American national security officials, yesterday reported that spies from countries like China and Russia had infiltrated the US electrical grid, planting software programs that could disrupt the network in a time of war.