Google hits back at Trump's suggestion it has committed treason over alleged China ties
The president had suggested Google could be secretly working with the Chinese army
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Google has hit out at Donald Trump's suggestion it is committing "treason" in collaboration with the Chinese army.
The company has denied that it works with China's military in response to the claims, posted by the president in an early morning Twitter storm.
The president had echoed claims made by tech billionaire and Trump supporter Peter Thiel, who suggested that Google has been infiltrated by Chinese governments and was working with them to undermine the US.
After apparently seeing the unsubstantiated claims on the Fox & Friends TV show, he tweeted a suggestion that he believes they may be true and that he would start an investigation into them.
"A great and brilliant guy who knows this subject better than anyone!" he wrote. "The Trump Administration will take a look!"
Now Google has said that it does not work with the Chinese army. "As we have said before, we do not work with the Chinese military," Google said in a statement shared with The Independent.
Over the weekend, billionaire investor Peter Thiel said the FBI and the CIA should open an investigation to determine if Google had been infiltrated by Chinese intelligence, according to Axios.
Alphabet, which owns Google, has been criticized in the past by Trump and administration officials for its interaction with China.
Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan told senators at a hearing this year that while he hasn't heard the tech giant say the word "refuse," Google has expressed a "lack of willingness to support" Defense Department programs. Shanahan told senators that $5 trillion of China's economy comprises state-owned enterprises and technology developed in the civilian world there transfers to the military sector.
"It's a direct pipeline," he said. "Not only is there a transfer, there's also systemic theft of U.S. technology that also facilitates even faster development of emerging technology."
Google CEO Sundar Pichai said at the time that he had conversations with Trump about investing in the American workforce, emerging technologies and "our ongoing commitment to working with the U.S. government."
According to the Axios story, Thiel said Google was "engaged in the seemingly treasonous decision to work with the Chinese military and not with the US military."
Additional reporting by agencies
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments