Last week, the United States gave China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) an early Christmas present when it announced that it would halt planned sanctions in response to the MSS’s massive cyber-espionage campaigns against American infrastructure. The Trump administration reversed course over concerns that the sanctions would derail a vital trade deal, the Financial Times first reported.

As a result, Beijing won’t be punished, even as the MSS was suspected of carrying out the wide-ranging, years-long cyberespionage “Salk Typhoon” campaign, also known as Salt Typhoon. Chinese hackers working for the MSS successfully targeted the “unencrypted communications of top US officials,” the paper of record explained.

The White House, which has imposed tariffs on US partners and allies to balance perceived unfair trade practices, has opted not to punish China out of fear it would threaten potential deals for rare-earth minerals. Beijing has consistently denied that the MSS carried out any cyber espionage campaign against the United States.

“Suspending sanctions on China’s Ministry of State Security may ease short-term trade tensions, but it weakens cyber deterrence at a time when state-backed groups like Salt Typhoon are already targeting critical telecom and defense networks,” warned Carlos Creus Moreira, CEO & founder of cybersecurity providers SEALSQ and WISeKey Group.

“Delaying new export controls similarly buys temporary stability but slows efforts to protect U.S. leadership in semiconductors, AI hardware, and advanced manufacturing tools—areas central to long-term technological security,” Moreira told The National Interest.

Not following through with sanctions on MSS could encourage China to continue its cyber espionage. Still, it could also suggest that the United States doesn’t take these threats as seriously as it does speedboats headed to American shores!

“Halting sanctions on the MSS in the middle of a trade negotiation signals that intelligence aggression can be priced, bargained, and waived when convenient. For the MSS, this is not a setback but an affirmation that its activities fall within a tolerable margin of geopolitical friction. Instead of creating deterrence, the decision confirms that economic leverage still outweighs security........

© The National Interest