US Secretary of State Blinken: China collects intelligence information from Cuba Ex on Britney Spears: “I’m afraid she’s on meth”

New allegations of Chinese espionage from the US add to the list of problems between the two countries. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in Washington on Monday that China has been using the island of Cuba, which is close to the US, to gather intelligence for some time. He responded to reports in the Wall Street Journal.

The accusations again come at a sensitive time: according to unconfirmed reports from various American media, Blinken wants to travel to China within a few days after serious diplomatic unrest. The US Secretary of State has not yet commented on possible travel plans. Blinken had planned a visit to China months ago, but canceled the trip at the last minute in early February due to other allegations of espionage against China.

The Wall Street Journal, citing US government circles, had reported in recent days that China and Cuba had signed a secret agreement to set up a new wiretapping facility on the island, south of the US state of Florida in the Caribbean. The newspaper wrote that due to its proximity to the US coast, Beijing may also be able to intercept electronic communications in parts of the US and monitor US shipping traffic. The White House initially described the report to the newspaper as “incorrect” and later added in a further statement that it was an ongoing problem and not a new development.

Blinken said that when US President Joe Biden took office in early 2021, the administration was briefed on a number of Chinese efforts around the world to expand its intelligence-gathering logistics base for military purposes. “They were considering a number of locations around the world for this expansion, including intelligence gathering facilities in Cuba,” he said. China then “upgraded its intelligence-gathering facilities in Cuba” in 2019, according to US information.

The Biden administration has concluded that despite some efforts by the previous administration, not enough has been done to counter Beijing’s efforts. Biden therefore ordered a “more direct approach”. “Since then we have implemented this approach quietly and deliberately, but in our opinion with results.” Blinken emphasized that he could not go into details. Among others, the US government contacted governments considering hosting Chinese listening stations in their countries. “Our experts believe that our diplomatic efforts have slowed these efforts by the People’s Republic of China.” The US government continues to monitor the situation and is taking steps to counter Beijing’s actions.

National Security Council communications director John Kirby said at the White House on Monday that the U.S. government has expressed concern to Cuba over the issue. “It is not a new development that China is trying to acquire intelligence capabilities in Cuba and quite frankly elsewhere in the hemisphere,” he said. However, the US government is confident that it can protect national secrets.

Kirby defended the government’s patchy communications on the matter. The information in this case is so sensitive that the government cannot go into detail. “And even now there is a limit to what we can say about our knowledge of these activities,” he said. “We were as open as we should have known about the nature of this information,” he said, lamenting the source of the reports: “It’s embarrassing that someone thinks it’s okay to share this kind of information to make it known to bring to the public.”

Kirby said the US government’s communications policy had nothing to do with Blinken’s possible travel plans. When asked if the recent coverage could affect a possible trip by the minister, he said he had not expected this. Only the Ministry of Foreign Affairs can say something about this. The ministry has so far remained silent about reports from various American media that, according to informed circles, Blinken wants to make up for his trip to China in the coming week. “We have no trip to announce for the minister,” the ministry said so far.

Relations between the US and China are tense over a slew of issues. These include China’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine, Beijing’s threats against Taiwan, and the ongoing trade war between the two countries. (sda/dpa)