China and Cuba have concluded a secret several billion dollar deal for China to establish an electronic surveillance facility in Cuba to spy on US military bases, The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th June, 2023) China and Cuba have concluded a secret several billion Dollar deal for China to establish an electronic surveillance facility in Cuba to spy on US military bases, The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.
�An eavesdropping base, built about 100 miles from US southeastern coast, would allow China to capture US electronic communications and monitor its ship traffic, which would pose an unprecedented threat, the report said.
"Establishing this facility signals a new, escalatory phase in China's broader defense strategy. It's a bit of a game changer," Craig Singleton, an expert at a security think tank in Washington, was quoted by The Wall Street Journal as saying.
The intelligence comes amid the Biden administration's efforts to improve relations with China, which remain strained following the alleged spy balloon incident in February 2023, according to the report.�
China's Embassy in Washington as well as the Cuban Embassy had no comment on the issue, the report said.�
The tensions between the US and China soared last August after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi traveled to Taipei despite Beijing's warnings against the visit. China condemned Pelosi's trip, which it regarded as a gesture of support for separatism, and launched large-scale military drills in the vicinity of the island.
The tensions further increased in February of this year when an alleged Chinese spy balloon traversed the continental United States before being shot down by the US military over the Atlantic Ocean.�
