China quietly builds worldwide space network, alarming US over future military power
FIRST ON FOX: More than a decade ago, China launched its Belt and Road Initiative, pouring billions into ports, railways and power plants across the developing world to extend Beijing’s...
By Fox News · Fox News
FIRST ON FOX: More than a decade ago, China launched its Belt and Road Initiative, pouring billions into ports, railways and power plants across the developing world to extend Beijing’s economic and political reach far beyond its borders. Today, experts say China is applying that same playbook to a far more strategic domain: space. Across Africa, Latin America and other parts of the Global South, Chinese firms have quietly built or expanded satellite ground stations, tracking facilities and space infrastructure that position Beijing as a gateway to orbit for countries like Pakistan, Egypt, Ethiopia, Venezuela, Argentina and Namibia, which lack the resources to get there on their own. Analysts warn the effort carries implications not just for economic influence, but for future warfare and global dominance. A new report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) finds that China is embedding itself deeply into the space programs of dozens of countries, offering end-to-end services that include satellite design, manufacturing, launches, training and ground infrastructure — a strategy that could give Beijing long-term leverage over a domain increasingly critical to modern military power. CHINA’S GLOBAL AGGRESSION CHECK: TAIWAN TENSIONS, MILITARY POSTURING, AND US RESPONSE IN 2025 High above Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, a newly expanded satellite facility built by Chinese firms now tracks objects in orbit. Similar Chinese-built or Chinese-operated sites have appeared in Egypt and Namibia, where large satellite dishes, tracking antennas and testing complexes support space missions that can serve both civilian and military purposes. Together, the facilities form part of a growing global network strengthening China’s ability to track, communicate with and potentially influence activity in space — now widely viewed by defense planners as a new frontier of conflict. "This is really about who’s winning the space diplomacy race in the Global South," sai…