As tensions rise between the world’s two largest economies, news of a possible Chinese surveillance program targeting the United States from just beyond its borders has surfaced.
U.S. sources say China has agreed to construct an electronic surveillance facility in Cuba, around 100 miles off the American coast.
According to reports, the planned espionage facility in Cuba has raised anxiety within the Biden administration, but National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said he could not respond specifically to the disturbing story.
An alleged billion-dollar agreement will let China build a facility to monitor communications across the southern United States, where dozens of military sites will be vulnerable. The Chinese surveillance facility can also potentially track U.S. naval vessels.
SIGINT surveillance, a kind of espionage monitoring, will reportedly be possible at the Chinese station, allowing Beijing to keep tabs on electronic communications and satellite signals.
Although Kirby was unable to address the specifics of the story, he did say that the United States was aware of and has spoken with the People’s Republic of China about its attempts to invest in infrastructure worldwide that may have military intentions.
Later this month, Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit China for a meeting with communist ruler Xi Jinping.
China has long been concocting a plan to take over Taiwan, which has heightened tensions between the two countries. The United States has remained by Taiwan, supplying armaments and deploying a limited number of troops to the island.
Earlier this week, Mike Turner (R-OH), the House Intelligence Committee chairman, warned that recent events show “unbelievable aggression” by communist China toward Western nations.
Since the United States maintains a base in Taiwan, some analysts say China thinks establishing one of its own in Cuba would level the playing field.
