United States Launches 2.000 Spy Operations Against China, Military Expert: It Endangers Sovereign Security

Illustration of the Chinese Warship Qiandaohu (AO 886) in joint military exercises in the Asia Pacific region. (Wikimedia Commons/RIMPAC)

JAKARTA - The United States has carried out at least 2.000 spy operations against China so far this year, at least so far, according to a military expert.

"The targets of these missions include Chinese-controlled islands and reefs in the South China Sea, as well as coastal areas of mainland China," said Cao Yanzhong, a researcher with the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Academy of Military Sciences, cited from Yenisafak, October 29.

Referring to the passage of US warships and aircraft in the contested waters of the South China Sea, he said "close spying operations were aimed at China," the South China Morning Post reported.

"The high frequency of such reconnaissance jeopardizes China's sovereign security and escalates regional tensions, which will inevitably provoke resolute opposition from China and undoubtedly increase the risk of fire," he added.

The military analyst was speaking at the 10th Xiangshan forum, an annual Chinese military conference held almost this week.

In early July, a think tank claimed the US surveyed the disputed South China Sea 'almost daily' in the first half of the year.

"AIS (Automatic Identification System) data reveals that the US has successively deployed all of its 5 marine reconnaissance vessels to the sensitive waters of the South China Sea on an almost daily basis, in the first half of 2021," the South China Sea Probing Initiative (SCSPI) based in Beijing in the biennial report.

In April, an SCSPI report said the US military's close reconnaissance of China in the South China Sea had seen "a sharp increase" in frequency, intensity, and relevance since 2009.

Close reconnaissance of the US military has often "been one of the three main obstacles to Sino-US military relations, becoming increasingly serious and risky, in the last two decades," SCSPI said.

"Currently, the US flies up to 2.000 sorties of reconnaissance aircraft over China's Yellow, East and South Seas per year," the report said.

To note, the South China Sea is claimed by China and several other regional countries, followed by continued US naval operations in the Taiwan Strait, part of the disputed sea, has angered Beijing.

China's statement is based on the 'nine-dash line', the purple line on China's official map showing Beijing's historical claims in the South China Sea.