Chinese ‘spies’ infiltrating US military bases by asking for Burger King directions Nicola Smith
https://www.aol.com/news/chinese-gatecrashers-access-us-military-111145878.html
Chinese spies posing as tourists have been infiltrating US military bases by booking hotels, asking directions to Burger King and scuba diving near missile sites.
American facilities and other sensitive sites have been accessed by Chinese nationals up to 100 times in recent years, US media reported.
The apparent rudimentary attempts at espionage come after threats from Chinese spycraft, including from air balloons drifting over nuclear bases.
Officials told the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that Chinese citizens have been found claiming to have a reservation at hotels on military bases.
In one recent case, a group claiming to be tourists tried to push past guards at Fort Wainwright, Alaska, saying they had booked a stay at a commercial hotel there. The base is home to the army’s 11th Airborne Division, which is responsible for Arctic warfare.
In two other unusual episodes, Chinese nationals were found crossing into a US missile range in New Mexico and scuba divers were spotted in murky waters near a rocket launch site in Florida.
On another occasion, possible spies have been found asking for directions to the nearest Burger King, which happens to be on a military base.
The Department of Defense, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and other agencies reportedly held a review last year to try to curb these types of incidents. The people involved have been coined gate-crashers because of their attempts, either by accident or intentionally, to access sensitive locations without authorisation.
Experts like Emily Harding from the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies have pointed to China’s advantage in the numbers game and their ability to “throw people at collection in large numbers”.
She added: “If a few of them get caught, it will be very difficult for the US government to prove anything beyond trespassing, and those who don’t get caught are likely to collect something useful.”
In some cases, individuals did gain unauthorised access to a base, “often by speeding through security checkpoints”, Sue Gough, a Pentagon spokeswoman, told the Journal.
“These individuals are often cited criminally, barred from future installation access and escorted off base,” she said but declined to comment on any specific occurrences.
Low point in US-China relations
The spate of incidents has occurred during a low point in US-China relations as they compete over global influence and jostle over trade and territorial disputes in the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait.
Tensions spiked earlier this year after the US accused China of flying a surveillance balloon over its territory and deployed a fighter jet to shoot it down. Beijing fiercely denied the accusations, repeatedly claiming it was a civilian research airship that had been blown off course.
Meanwhile, a trip to Beijing last week by Gina Raimondo, the US commerce secretary – as a step to help restore ties – was blighted by an attempt to hack her emails.
Ms Raimondo told CNN on Sunday that she had been “very clear, direct and firm” with her Chinese counterparts, telling them that the email hacking “erodes trust” and had not gone unnoticed.
“They suggested that they didn’t know about it. And they suggested that it wasn’t intentional,” Ms Raimondo said. “But I think it was important that I put it on the table and let them know and let them know that it’s hard to build trust when you have actions like that.”
China’s embassy in Washington DC also strongly challenged the US version of attempted military base incursions.
“The relevant claims are purely ill-intentioned fabrications,” spokesperson Liu Pengyu told the WSJ.
“We urge the relevant US officials to abandon the Cold War mentality, stop groundless accusations, and do more things that are conducive to enhancing mutual trust between the two countries and friendship between the two peoples.”
Officials at the White House and the Department of Homeland Security declined to comment and government officials referred queries to the FBI, which also declined to comment.
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