Report: Cuba to Host Secret PRC Spy Base Focused on US

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Facts

  • The Wall Street Journal on Thursday reported — citing US officials familiar with highly-classified intelligence — that China and Cuba have secretly agreed to build an electronic eavesdropping facility on the Caribbean island, in another geopolitical challenge by Beijing to the US.1
  • The PRC allegedly offered Havana several billion dollars to host the spy base, to which the two countries have agreed in principle. It will reportedly focus on gathering electronic communications — or "signals intelligence" — from throughout the southeastern US, where many US military bases are located.2
  • This comes as the Biden admin. has recently tried to mend relations with China after the alleged spy balloon incident. Following the covert visit to the PRC by CIA Director William ("Bill") Burns last week, US Sec. of State Blinken is expected to visit Beijing later in June.3
  • Some lawmakers, however, believe Biden offering an olive branch to Beijing is a bad idea, with Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.)—a member of both the House Intelligence and Armed Services committees—saying Thursday that China is "executing the Soviet Union’s playbook" and that Blinken should cancel his trip.4
  • During the Cold War, the Soviet Union operated a large electronic and signals intelligence facility in Lourdes, just outside Havana, which Moscow maintained operational until 2001.5
  • The White House, however, cast doubt on the reported China-Cuba spying deal, with National Security Council spokesman John Kirby stating that the press report is "not accurate."6

Sources: 1Wall Street Journal, 2Daily Caller, 3The Telegraph, 4POLITICO, 5Business Insider, and 6Bloomberg.

Narratives

  • Anti-China narrative, as provided by New York Times. Though the US has been trying to mend ties with China following months of strained relations, the predicted thaw has been obstructed as Beijing adopts a tougher stance concerning tech export controls and demands the dropping of sanctions imposed on its officials and companies. If China remains intransigent — pushing to set its own terms to re-engage with the US — cooling tensions will be very difficult.
  • Pro-China narrative, as provided by Global Times. While Washington blames Beijing for not engaging in superficial interactions allegedly intended to restore bilateral communications, its actions reveal that the US keeps harming Chinese interests in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Straits. If the US wants to have a meaningful dialogue, it must take practical measures to build trust.

Predictions