China-linked spy site expansion in Cuba raises alarms near key US military bases
As the Trump administration ramps up pressure on Cuba, renewed scrutiny is falling on expanding intelligence infrastructure on the island that analysts say could help China and Russia monitor sensitive...
By Fox News · Fox News
As the Trump administration ramps up pressure on Cuba , renewed scrutiny is falling on expanding intelligence infrastructure on the island that analysts say could help China and Russia monitor sensitive U.S. military activity near Florida. New reporting and satellite analysis of a major Cuban signals intelligence facility outside Havana have intensified concerns about foreign surveillance capabilities positioned near Key West naval operations, Homestead Air Reserve Base and launches from Cape Canaveral. Recent reporting, including a Wall Street Journal report citing U.S. officials who believe Chinese and Russian intelligence personnel and capabilities in Cuba have significantly expanded in recent years, has renewed focus on the island’s role in foreign intelligence gathering against the United States. CHINA'S SPYING IN CUBA SPARKS ALARM ON CAPITOL HILL AFTER FRESH SATELLITE IMAGES SHOW SURVEILLANCE BUILDUP Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently acknowledged that Cuba hosts Russian and Chinese intelligence presence near Florida, while Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., warned the facilities pose "a big threat" to nearby military operations. "They’re 90 miles from our coast . They’re friends with our enemies," Scott told Fox News Digital. "It’s a big threat. … It’s very significant risk to us." Analysts caution that highly sensitive U.S. military communications likely are encrypted and difficult to intercept directly. But facilities like Bejucal, Cuba, can still help adversaries track how U.S. military assets move, communicate and operate over time by monitoring electronic signatures and communications patterns. "You might not know what one system talking to another system is saying, but you know that they talk to each other," CSIS fellow Matthew Funaiole told Fox News Digital. "Over time that helps reveal operational patterns." Funaiole said the facilities likely are more useful for mapping military activity and identifying electronic signatures than directly intercepting se…