The Department of Justice announced indictments of 10 Chinese agents and conspirators for stealing intellectual property and business secrets in aerospace and other high tech industries.

Why it matters: The Chinese government has been believed to commit economic espionage for years — an allegation it denies. If what U.S. lawmakers, law enforcement officials, intelligence agents and private security firms believe is true, this is a multibillion dollar scheme illicitly converting U.S. firms' research and development into Chinese companies' profits.