![]() ![]() According to Federal Communications Commission filings, those cell towers use Chinese technology that security experts have warned in recent years could allow China to gather intelligence while also potentially mounting network attacks in the areas surrounding this and other sensitive military installations. Nestled among these silos are clusters of cell phone towers operated by a small rural wireless carrier. These Minuteman III rockets are capable of delivering nuclear warheads at least 6,000 miles away and are part of the US Strategic Command, which oversees the country's nuclear and missile arsenal. Outside Malmstrom Air Force Base in central Montana, spread across 13,800 square miles of open plains, more than 100 intercontinental ballistic missiles stand at the ready, buried deep underground in missile silos. "Balloon payloads can now weigh less, and so the balloons can be smaller, cheaper and easier to launch" than satellites, Layton said. ![]() Recent advances in the miniaturization of electronics mean the floating intelligence platforms may be making a comeback in the modern spying toolkit. While the suspected Chinese balloon spotted in the skies above multiple US states this week prompted an uproar from Republicans and Democrats alike, it is not the first time this kind of activity has been observed.Ī US official said Friday there had been similar incidents over Hawaii and Guam in recent years, while another official on Thursday said, "Instances of this activity have been observed over the past several years, including prior to this administration." Here's what we know about how China spies on the US: Balloons and satellites But Chinese officials say a similar thing - Beijing has in the past repeatedly accused the US of espionage.Ĭhina denies that the balloon currently above the US is involved in any kind of espionage, claiming it is a "civilian airship used for research, mainly meteorological, purposes" that has been blown off course. US officials say Beijing uses every tool at its disposal to gain a strategic advantage over the United States, its primary geopolitical rival. Still, American officials have sought to distinguish US actions from what they say is the more brazen espionage being carried out by the Chinese government. RELATED: Chinese spy balloon: Recovery efforts underway after US downs balloon over Atlantic Ocean The US has sought to collect its own intelligence about the Chinese government, using methods that include flying surveillance aircraft over disputed islands claimed by Beijing, human sources and signal intercepts. The suspected Chinese surveillance balloon that violated American airspace this week has fueled a diplomatic crisis with the postponement of Secretary of State Antony Blinken's planned trip to Beijing.īut the two countries have a long history of spying on each other. downed a suspected Chinese spy balloon off the Carolina coast after it traversed sensitive military sites across North America. ![]()
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