Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte raised concerns about a cyberespionage attack against the Netherlands during a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Wednesday.
This comes after the Dutch intelligence agency MIVD publicly accused China of hacking into a Dutch military network last month. This marked a shift for the Netherlands, as it was the first time they publicly attributed cyberespionage to China.
“Of course we discuss all difficult topics,” Rutte said after the talks, “including cyberattacks.” He confirmed that he directly addressed the attack on the Dutch Ministry of Defense, which the MIVD linked to China.
The accusation adds to existing tensions between China and Western nations over cyberespionage. The United States and Britain recently accused China of a large-scale cyberespionage campaign targeting governments, businesses, and individuals worldwide.