We have updated our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use for Eurasia Group and its affiliates, including GZERO Media, to clarify the types of data we collect, how we collect it, how we use data and with whom we share data. By using our website you consent to our Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy, including the transfer of your personal data to the United States from your country of residence, and our use of cookies described in our Cookie Policy.
{{ subpage.title }}
An improvised gate blocks the way leading to a Cuban military base near Bejucal.
Chinese troops in ... Cuba?
What's China up to in Cuba these days? First, setting up an electronic spy base. Now, it's reportedly planning to build a military training facility on the island.
That's right — America's No. 1 geopolitical rival could potentially deploy its troops just 100 miles off the coast of Florida.
If you're the US, that's too close for comfort. More troubling geopolitically, China's plans in Cuba seem to be part of "Project 141," an ambitious strategy by the People's Liberation Army to vastly expand China's global military footprint that includes a base in Djibouti and naval outposts in Cambodia and the UAE.
But if you're China, flexing your military muscles in Cuba is an adequate response to the US Navy's presence in the disputed South China Sea or near Taiwan, which is also about 100 miles from mainland China. And the US can hardly complain about a Chinese military presence on its doorstep when it has more than 350,000 troops stationed within striking distance of Beijing.
Throwback: In 1962, the Soviets got caught red-handed deploying nuclear missiles in Cuba. Yet, more than six decades later, the Chinese don't seem to be trying too hard to conceal their activities on the island from US intelligence. However inaccurate, the Cold War narrative is becoming harder to dispute.China snoops on US from Cuba, US shares drone data with Taiwan
On Thursday, the WSJ reported that China and Cuba have cut a deal to establish an electronic spy base on the island, barely 90 miles from the US mainland, presumably in exchange for a hefty sum of yuan. This is a big deal because it would allow the Chinese to eavesdrop on military comms in the southeastern US and monitor ship traffic from America's doorstep.
Meanwhile, the US, Japan, and Taiwan have agreed to share real-time data from naval reconnaissance drones — crucial to anticipate and respond to a hypothetical Chinese attack on Taiwan. But what'll really trigger Beijing is direct military cooperation between Washington and Taipei.
While China snooping on the US from nearby Cuba — and not hiding it from US intelligence — is likely intended to give Uncle Sam a taste of its own medicine over the US military presence in the South China Sea and near Taiwan, granting Taipei access to intel that would give the self-ruled island a heads-up that China is on its way is probably meant to warn Xi Jinping: We might do a bit more than just help Taiwan defend itself.
We don’t think the US and China are in a Cold War, but they are certainly doing things with Cold War vibes to each other. And this icy bilateral temperature raises the stakes ahead of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s planned visit to Beijing sometime this month, a trip he had to delay over that spy balloon.