China urges Internet cooperation

China will increase Internet-related cooperation with other emerging nations to cope with increasingly severe challenges in Internet security, an official said. Wang Chen, head of the State Internet Information Office, made the remarks in a keynote speech at the 2012 Internet Roundtable for Emerging Countries in Beijing, China's state-run Xinhua News Agency reported. "Emerging countries have a lot of common understanding, similar conduct and appeals regarding the development of the Internet, as well as common interests and a sound basis for cooperation," he said. The roundtable, attended by government officials, Internet experts and corporate representatives from China, Russia, Brazil and South Africa, was intended as a platform for emerging countries to conduct exchanges and share experience regarding the development of the Internet, he said. The online sector has grown rapidly since China gained access to the Internet in 1994, with the number of Internet users in the country reaching 538 million in June of this year, the most users of any country in the world, Xinhua reported.