China-linked hackers accessed the email account of U.S Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns as part of a recent targeted intelligence-gathering campaign, two U.S. officials familiar with the matter confirmed to NBC News.
The hackers also breached the email account of Daniel Kritenbrink, the assistant secretary of State for East Asia, the officials said. Kritenbrink recently traveled with Secretary of State Antony Blinken to China.
The breach, first reported by The Wall Street Journal on Thursday, was limited to the diplomats' unclassified email accounts, the officials said.
Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo’s email account was also accessed in the breach, according to the officials.
Blinken in June went to China for a two-day trip in an effort to cool tensions between Beijing and Washington.
More details about the breach of the diplomats’ email accounts were breached were not immediately available.
Read the full story on NBCNews.com here.
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