China reportedly reaches deal with Cuba to build spy base
Beijing could gather electronic communications from southeastern US and its military bases
08 June 2023 - 20:19
byMatt Spetalnick and Jonathan Landay
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A suspected Chinese spy balloon in the sky over Billings, Montana, February 1 2023. Picture: CHASE DOAK/REUTERS
Washington — China has reached a secret deal with Cuba to establish an electronic eavesdropping facility on the island roughly 160km from Florida, the Wall Street Journal said on Thursday, but the White House cast some doubt on the report.
Such a spy installation would allow Beijing to gather electronic communications from the southeastern US, which houses many US military bases, as well as monitor ship traffic, the newspaper reported, citing US officials familiar with classified intelligence.
The US Central Command headquarters is based in Tampa. Fort Liberty, formerly Fort Bragg, the largest US military base, is based in North Carolina.
The countries have reached an agreement in principle, the officials said, with China to pay Cuba “several billion dollars” to allow the eavesdropping station, according to the Journal.
“We have seen the report. It's not accurate,” John Kirby, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, told Reuters. But he did not specify what he thought was incorrect.
‘Real concerns’
He said the US has had “real concerns” about China’s relationship with Cuba and was closely monitoring it.
A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington said: “We are not aware of the case and as a result we can't give a comment right now.”
The Cuban government did not respond to a request for comment. But veteran Cuban diplomat Jose Cabanas, former ambassador to the US, wrote in a tweet that Washington was “trying to demonise Cuba again”. He did not elaborate.
The agreement between the two US rivals, both ruled by communist governments, has caused alarm in President Joe Biden's administration, the newspaper said, posing a new threat close to America's shores.
The WSJ said US officials declined to provide more details about the proposed location of the listening station or whether construction had begun.
Spy balloons
The reported deal comes as Washington and Beijing are taking tentative steps to soothe tensions that spiked after a suspected Chinese high-altitude spy balloon crossed the US before the US military shot it down off the East Coast in February.
It could also raise questions about a trip to China that US officials say secretary of state Antony Blinken is planning in coming weeks. Washington's top diplomat had earlier scrapped the visit over the spy balloon incident.
Ties have deteriorated over disputes ranging from military activity in the South China Sea and near Taiwan, Beijing's human rights record, and technology competition.
“We have had real concerns about the China’s relationship with Cuba, and we have been concerned since day one of the administration about China’s activities in our hemisphere and around the world,” the White House’s Kirby said.
“We are closely monitoring it and taking steps to counter it. We remain confident that we are able to meet all our security commitments at home and in the region.”
'Direct assault'
US senator Bob Menendez, Democratic chair of the Senate foreign relations committee and a Cuba hawk, said if the report is true, it would be “a direct assault upon the US”.
“So, I hope the administration will think about how they’ll react, if it’s true,” he said.
A former US intelligence official said on condition of anonymity that a Chinese listening post would be a “big deal”, marking an expansion of Beijing’s spying capabilities and giving it access to signals intelligence as far north as Washington.
If such a facility is built, the Chinese will use Cuba “as a beachhead for collection against the US”, said Daniel Hoffman, a former senior CIA undercover officer.
However, the US has a long history of spying on China in its own neighbourhood. It is widely reported to have used Taiwan as a listening post for the mainland and regularly flies spy aeroplanes in the South China Sea, angering Beijing.
The head of Taiwan’s National Security Bureau told the island’s parliament in April that Taiwan was conducting real-time encrypted intelligence sharing with Five Eyes partners, which includes the US
A cash infusion would likely be welcomed in Cuba, where the economy is sputtering and inflation, fuel shortages, plunging farm production and a cash crunch continue to fan discontent.
Relations between Washington and Havana remain strained. The Biden administration last year partially rolled back some Trump-era restrictions on remittances and travel to the island, but Cuban officials called the steps insufficient.
The intelligence on the agreement was gathered in recent weeks and was convincing, the WSJ reported. The officials said it would allow China to conduct signals intelligence, including emails, phone calls and satellite transmission.
Cuba, an old cold war foe of the US, has long been a hotbed of espionage and spy games.
The Cuban missile crisis in 1962 began after Moscow began placing Soviet nuclear weapons on the island. It backed down and removed the missiles, but it is widely regarded as the moment when the US and the Soviet Union came closest to a nuclear confrontation.
The Soviets installed a spy base on the island at Lourdes, just south of Havana, in the mid-1960s, with parabolic antennas aimed at Cuba´s northern neighbour. Russian President Vladimir Putin closed the facility in the early 2000s.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
China reportedly reaches deal with Cuba to build spy base
Beijing could gather electronic communications from southeastern US and its military bases
Washington — China has reached a secret deal with Cuba to establish an electronic eavesdropping facility on the island roughly 160km from Florida, the Wall Street Journal said on Thursday, but the White House cast some doubt on the report.
Such a spy installation would allow Beijing to gather electronic communications from the southeastern US, which houses many US military bases, as well as monitor ship traffic, the newspaper reported, citing US officials familiar with classified intelligence.
The US Central Command headquarters is based in Tampa. Fort Liberty, formerly Fort Bragg, the largest US military base, is based in North Carolina.
The countries have reached an agreement in principle, the officials said, with China to pay Cuba “several billion dollars” to allow the eavesdropping station, according to the Journal.
“We have seen the report. It's not accurate,” John Kirby, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, told Reuters. But he did not specify what he thought was incorrect.
‘Real concerns’
He said the US has had “real concerns” about China’s relationship with Cuba and was closely monitoring it.
A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington said: “We are not aware of the case and as a result we can't give a comment right now.”
The Cuban government did not respond to a request for comment. But veteran Cuban diplomat Jose Cabanas, former ambassador to the US, wrote in a tweet that Washington was “trying to demonise Cuba again”. He did not elaborate.
The agreement between the two US rivals, both ruled by communist governments, has caused alarm in President Joe Biden's administration, the newspaper said, posing a new threat close to America's shores.
The WSJ said US officials declined to provide more details about the proposed location of the listening station or whether construction had begun.
Spy balloons
The reported deal comes as Washington and Beijing are taking tentative steps to soothe tensions that spiked after a suspected Chinese high-altitude spy balloon crossed the US before the US military shot it down off the East Coast in February.
It could also raise questions about a trip to China that US officials say secretary of state Antony Blinken is planning in coming weeks. Washington's top diplomat had earlier scrapped the visit over the spy balloon incident.
Ties have deteriorated over disputes ranging from military activity in the South China Sea and near Taiwan, Beijing's human rights record, and technology competition.
“We have had real concerns about the China’s relationship with Cuba, and we have been concerned since day one of the administration about China’s activities in our hemisphere and around the world,” the White House’s Kirby said.
“We are closely monitoring it and taking steps to counter it. We remain confident that we are able to meet all our security commitments at home and in the region.”
'Direct assault'
US senator Bob Menendez, Democratic chair of the Senate foreign relations committee and a Cuba hawk, said if the report is true, it would be “a direct assault upon the US”.
“So, I hope the administration will think about how they’ll react, if it’s true,” he said.
A former US intelligence official said on condition of anonymity that a Chinese listening post would be a “big deal”, marking an expansion of Beijing’s spying capabilities and giving it access to signals intelligence as far north as Washington.
If such a facility is built, the Chinese will use Cuba “as a beachhead for collection against the US”, said Daniel Hoffman, a former senior CIA undercover officer.
However, the US has a long history of spying on China in its own neighbourhood. It is widely reported to have used Taiwan as a listening post for the mainland and regularly flies spy aeroplanes in the South China Sea, angering Beijing.
The head of Taiwan’s National Security Bureau told the island’s parliament in April that Taiwan was conducting real-time encrypted intelligence sharing with Five Eyes partners, which includes the US
A cash infusion would likely be welcomed in Cuba, where the economy is sputtering and inflation, fuel shortages, plunging farm production and a cash crunch continue to fan discontent.
Relations between Washington and Havana remain strained. The Biden administration last year partially rolled back some Trump-era restrictions on remittances and travel to the island, but Cuban officials called the steps insufficient.
The intelligence on the agreement was gathered in recent weeks and was convincing, the WSJ reported. The officials said it would allow China to conduct signals intelligence, including emails, phone calls and satellite transmission.
Cuba, an old cold war foe of the US, has long been a hotbed of espionage and spy games.
The Cuban missile crisis in 1962 began after Moscow began placing Soviet nuclear weapons on the island. It backed down and removed the missiles, but it is widely regarded as the moment when the US and the Soviet Union came closest to a nuclear confrontation.
The Soviets installed a spy base on the island at Lourdes, just south of Havana, in the mid-1960s, with parabolic antennas aimed at Cuba´s northern neighbour. Russian President Vladimir Putin closed the facility in the early 2000s.
Reuters
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