The Chinese government denied involvement in Internet attacks and defended its online censorship Jan. 25 after the United States urged Beijing to investigate complaints of cyber intrusions in a dispute that has added tension to bilateral relations.

China's policy against Internet hacking attacks is transparent and consistent, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said, nearly two weeks after Google Inc. threatened to pull out of the country after finding that the e-mails of activists had been pried into.

"Any accusation that the Chinese government participated in cyber attacks, either in an explicit or indirect way, is groundless and aims to discredit China," an unidentified ministry spokesman said.

The State Council, China's Cabinet, defended the country's regulation of the Internet, saying it is legal and that other parties should not interfere in Beijing's domestic affairs, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

On Jan. 21, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton criticized countries engaging in cyberspace censorship and urged China to investigate the attacks against Google. In a speech in Washington, Clinton cited China as among a number of countries where there had been "a spike in threats to the free flow of information" over the past year. She also named Tunisia, Uzbekistan, Egypt, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam.

The Foreign Ministry accused the United States of damaging relations while a Chinese state newspaper said Washington was imposing "information imperialism" on China.