FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Adora Jenkins; (202) 524-4397

Washington - The Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), the global voice of the tech sector, welcomes the announcement today by the United States and China related to cybersecurity. This agreement contains outcomes ITI has strongly advocated in the lead-in to the Presidential Summit between President Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The commitment is an important advancement on key topics, securing agreement that neither government will engage in cyber-espionage for economic purposes, and initiating a new mechanism for dialogue on cyber issues between security agencies in both countries. These are important initial steps to reducing bilateral tensions related to cybersecurity and begin to improve what has been an increasingly difficult business environment for information communication technology companies in China.

“This announcement shows that the highest levels of government from both nations understand that cybersecurity tensions should not be a barrier to free trade and open systems of innovation,” said ITI President and CEO Dean Garfield. “This agreement finally starts a sustained dialogue where there was very little communication. It illustrates a spirit of cooperation on a sensitive issue, which is a positive signal to technology companies. We will work to ensure this cooperation on cybersecurity will be a bridge to improved market access for global technology companies. ITI and its members, which include the world’s most innovative companies, will continue to work with both governments to further mutual understanding and ensure implementation of these commitments.”

ITI was at the forefront of calling for and outlining the actions that both countries needed to take in order to make this critical initial gain. For the past few months, ITI participated in ongoing talks with officials from both the U.S. and China and on August 11, 2015, ITI, along with 18 other technology associations, sent a letter to the White House discussing how China’s proposed protectionist regulations would be harmful to the technology sector. Then on September 2, 2015, ITI outlined recommendations in advance of President Xi’s visit in its TechWonk blog.

Related [Trade & Investment, Cybersecurity]