The Trump administration was aware of employees representing two Chinese tech giants entering suspected spy facilities in Cuba, fueling suspicions the firms colluded with Beijing to surveil the U.S., The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Officials tracked intelligence showing workers for Huawei and ZTE going back and forth between facilities in Cuba where China has operated espionage outposts since at least 2019, leading the administration to believe China sought to expand spying capabilities on the island, the WSJ reported. The Trump administration designated Huawei and ZTE national security threats, placing them on an export blacklist and urging allies to ban Huawei products.
Huawei and ZTE develop commercial communications technology used by private companies and governments worldwide, including data servers and network technology the spy outpost could use to transmit data to Beijing, according to the WSJ.
Huawei denied “such groundless accusations” in a statement to the outlet, adding the company remains “committed to full compliance with the applicable laws and regulations where we operate.”
The WSJ could not confirm whether the Biden administration followed a similar line of investigation, and the Director of National Intelligence did not respond to the outlet’s request for comment. Neither did ZTE or the Chinese embassy in the U.S. (RELATED: US Bans Chinese Tech That Allegedly Lets China Spy On Military Sites)
The Cuban and Chinese governments run at least four joint surveillance facilities on the island, according to the WSJ.
The Biden administration characterized a June 8 report from the WSJ that described Chinese plans to establish a signals intelligence collection outpost on Cuba as “inaccurate”, without providing specifics. White House officials disclosed newly declassified intelligence days later showing that China has established intelligence collection operations for years and conducted at least one major upgrade to existing facilities in 2019.
Beijing “will keep trying to enhance its presence in Cuba, and we will keep working to disrupt it,” a U.S. official said Monday, according to the WSJ.
March 6, 2019 – Chinese telecom giant Huawei gave foreign media a peek into its state-of-the-art facilities on March 6 as the normally secretive company steps up a counter-offensive against US warnings that it could be used by Beijing for espionage and sabotage. (WANG ZHAO/AFP via Getty Images)
Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin raised concerns about Huawei’s continued involvement in upgrading the Cuban government’s communication infrastructure in letter to Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines and Commerce Department Secretary Gina Raimondo on Tuesday, according to the WSJ.
China’s “military-civil fusion” policy, which involves stealing technology from foreign sources through business deals between ostensibly private Chinese firms and international companies, would require even private Chinese firms to participate in Beijing’s effort to enhance intelligence collection facilities on the island, Gallagher said, according to the WSJ.
In addition, the long-term presence of Huawei, ZTE and another firm, Green Dragon, could provide cover for Chinese intelligence operatives to travel to and from Cuba, he said.
The White House and ZTE did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment.
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