Multiple Caribbean and US government officials denied a Wall Street Journal claim that Beijing wanted to establish an espionage facility in Cuba. A New York Times “exclusive” described “a secret agreement for China to establish an electronic eavesdropping facility on the island,” prompting denials. According to unidentified US sources familiar with “highly classified intelligence,” the proposed site would allow China to perform “signals intelligence” and collect US emails, phone conversations, and other data.
According to the Journal, Beijing had agreed to pay Cuba “several billion dollars” to build the facility. “We saw the report. John Kirby, White House National Security Council spokeswoman, told reporters, “It’s not accurate,” without specifying what was wrong. “We are not aware of China and Cuba developing a new type of spy station,” said US defense department spokeswoman Brigadier General Patrick Ryder. In Havana, Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernandez de Cossio called the Journal report “totally mendacious and unfounded” and a US fiction to defend Washington’s decades-old economic embargo. The island opposed all foreign military involvement in Latin America and the Caribbean. “We are not aware of the case and as a result, we can’t give a comment right now,” said a Chinese embassy official in Washington. The story shook US politics, especially the right, as Cuba is 150 kilometers (93 miles) from Florida. China threatened a US fighter plane and navy ship last month. “Now, it’s putting a spy base in Cuba,” Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley tweeted. Ohio Representative Jim Jordan repeated her indignation, accusing US President Joe Biden and linking the discovery to the Chinese spy balloon US intelligence found earlier this year. First, a Chinese spy balloon. Now a Chinese espionage base. Not under Trump. “Now under President Biden,” he wrote. The Journal stated that Beijing could monitor ship traffic and electronic communications from the southern US, which has major US military sites.
Tampa houses Central Command. North Carolina hosts Fort Liberty, formerly Fort Bragg, the biggest US military post. The purported accord comes as Washington and Beijing appear to be taking cautious moves to deescalate tensions over Taiwan, the South China Sea, human rights, and the suspected spy balloon. Secretary of State Antony Blinken cancelled a visit to Beijing in February due to the balloon controversy, although it was suggested it may happen soon. The White House’s Kirby stated, “We have had real concerns about 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.
