Mutual trust essential for cybersecurity

Before President Xi Jinping's state visit to the US, the Barack Obama administration hinted at imposing sanctions on China over the alleged hacking of American companies' computers on Sept 16. US media outlets ruled out the possibility at such a crucial time, though.

Rumors about possible US sanctions against Chinese companies over cybersecurity issues have been making headlines in the US media since late July. According to some of the reports, the Obama administration is discussing the possibility of imposing sanctions on Chinese companies that they believe have "stolen information" from the US Office of Personnel Management.

But if the US imposes sanctions on China or its companies, it would be overreacting to an imagined enemy's actions and, in the process, would damage Sino-US ties.