US Intelligence Chiefs speaking at the first congressional hearing about global threats in more than two years on April 14, focussed on China’s push to expand its influence and Beijing’s aspirations. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines called China an “unparalleled priority” for the spy community, while FBI Director Christopher Wray told senators that his agency has more than 2,000 open investigations that “tie back to the Chinese government,” with new probes being opened every 10 hours. He said the bureau has seen a 1,300 per cent increase in economic espionage cases tied to Beijing over the last several years. Wray said, “I don’t think there is any country that presents a more severe threat to our innovation, our economic security and our democratic ideals.” CIA Director William Burns noted that “competition and technology is right at the core of our rivalry with an increasingly adversarial Chinese Communist Party and Chinese leadership in the coming years.” Officials were quoted by Politico.com (April 14) as saying that the intelligence community’s focus on China is wide-ranging.