The Aporia · China urges US to ‘stop all spying’ or face retaliation, slams ‘gangster logic’

China’s commerce ministry responded sharply to recent comments by a CIA official, demanding that the US cease all spying activities or risk consequences. The ministry's statement came after Michael Ellis, deputy director of the CIA, publicly disclosed plans to intensify intelligence efforts on China in sectors like AI and semiconductors. The Chinese officials accused the United States of using “gangster logic” and emphasized that economic competition should be based on merit rather than espionage.

Written by the local model on 2026-09-12, using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the same event (that is the story summary below).

Story summary

On Tuesday, Michael Ellis, deputy director of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), announced that the CIA is expanding its intelligence activities targeting China, specifically mentioning areas like AI, semiconductors, and biotechnology as legitimate targets for espionage. In response, the Chinese Commerce Ministry issued a statement on Friday condemning the US’s approach as “gangster logic of hegemony,” emphasizing that economic competition should be based on technology, talent, and innovation rather than espionage. The ministry urged the US to cease all spying activities or face potential retaliation from China.

Written for “China Us Spy Dispute” on 2026-09-12, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Why this leaning score

The article's own words the score was based on. Each is quoted verbatim and was checked against the article text before being stored, so you can find it in the original.

Friday’s brief Chinese ministry statement said the US had “exposed its gangster logic of hegemony in broad daylight”, which China firmly opposed.

left criticizes US actions as aggressive and unjustified
Economic competition was a regular commercial activity, and those in advantage relied on technology, talent and innovation, said the statement, which was attributed to a ministry representative.

left frames economic competition as normal business rather than national security issue

Score -0.35 Confidence high

Leaning score -0.35 for article 8391 (high confidence, 2 verified quotes) · logged 2026-09-12

📰 China Us Spy Dispute

Politics · 1 article(s) covering the same event. This is the one the site leads with.

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability

Source leaning vs. consistency

This article reads leans left and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.

Feds accuse China of industrial-scale theft of America’s AI secrets different event · 20%

The Independent

⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 27% hedged 3 of 11 📰 publisher trust 59

“The articles describe different aspects of the relationship between China and the US regarding intelligence activities; one accuses China of theft while the other is a response to accusations.”

South China Morning Post · 207 article(s) · 0 correction(s) detected

No corrections detected for this publisher. That may mean careful reporting, or simply that nothing has been checked.

Phoebe Zhang

2 article(s) here · 0 carrying a prediction

Also by Phoebe Zhang

Banking veteran Li Yun fills senior Shenzhen posts in countdown to Apec

2026-08-24 · South China Morning Post

Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

CIA China Chinese Commerce the US Central Intelligence Agency

China GPE · 4× CIA ORG · 2× Chinese NORP · 2× Commerce ORG · 1× Ellis PERSON · 1× Michael Ellis PERSON · 1× the US Central Intelligence Agency ORG · 1×

In a rare public speech on Tuesday, Ellis revealed that the CIA was expanding its intelligence work on China, suggesting that Chinese companies were “legitimate targets” for espionage in areas such as AI, semiconductors and biotechnology.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-12

2026-09-12 · South China Morning Post

China urges US to ‘stop all spying’ or face retaliation, slams ‘gangster logic’ · assertive framing

China urges US to ‘stop all spying’ or face retaliation, slams ‘gangster logic’ Commerce ministry retort follows CIA official’s defence of spying on China’s AI and chip sectors just weeks ahead of US visit by Xi asserted

retort → urge → Xi

The ministry’s remarks late on Friday were in direct response to statements made earlier in the week by Michael Ellis, the deputy director of the US Central Intelligence Agency. asserted

remarks → make → Agency

In a rare public speech on Tuesday, Ellis revealed that the CIA was expanding its intelligence work on China, suggesting that Chinese companies were “legitimate targets” for espionage in areas such as AI, semiconductors and biotechnology. asserted

companies → reveal → AI

Friday’s brief Chinese ministry statement said the US had “exposed its gangster logic of hegemony in broad daylight”, which China firmly opposed. asserted

China → say → which

Economic competition was a regular commercial activity, and those in advantage relied on technology, talent and innovation, said the statement, which was attributed to a ministry representative. asserted

which → rely → representative

China urges US to ‘stop all spying’ or face retaliation, slams ‘gangster logic’

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