Beijing spies a useful friend in Castro

[InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>]

Forwarded from: William Knowles <wk () c4i org>

http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/02/26/1046064102910.html

February 27 2003
By Hamish McDonald 
China Correspondent 
Beijing

Cuba's veteran communist leader Fidel Castro received a warm welcome 
yesterday in Beijing on his way home from the Non-Aligned Movement 
meeting in Malaysia.

But this does not reflect admiration for his ideological convictions 
or appreciation for Latin music. The "buena vista" (good view) most 
appreciated is the vantage point Dr Castro provides for the Chinese 
military in spying on the United States.

According to Professor Desmond Ball of the Australian National 
University, Chinese personnel have been operating two intelligence 
signal stations in Cuba since early 1999, after an agreement reached 
in February 1998. One is a large complex at Bejucal, just south of 
Havana, which is equipped with 10 satellite communications antennas 
and is mainly concerned with intercepting telephone communications in 
the US. 

A "cyber warfare" unit is also based at Bejucal, which monitors data 
traffic, Professor Ball said in a paper delivered to a conference on 
China's military role, held in New Delhi last month.

The second station is located north-east of Santiago de Cuba, and is 
reportedly dedicated to intercepting satellite-based US military 
communications. "China is actively and extensively engaged in the 
whole realm of signals intelligence, electronic warfare and cyber 
warfare activities," Professor Ball said, adding that it maintains "by 
far the most extensive signals intelligence capabilities of all the 
countries in Asia."

The only other foreign-based intercept stations are thought to be in 
Burma, although the Chinese military also maintains a fleet of 
specialised ships and aircraft for mobile interception operations. 
Equipment comes from Russia and Israel, as well as domestic 
laboratories.

Although its technical expertise is still poor, China has been 
conducting cyber warfare exercises since 1997; computer viruses have 
been used to disrupt military communications and public broadcasts, 
with theoretical targets including Japan, India, South Korea and 
Taiwan.

An information warfare unit has been operating since 2000. The 
military interest is matched by individual hackers in China, whose 
feats have included crashing the White House website.

Chinese cyber attacks are easily countered by anti-virus and network 
security programs available in the West.

"China is condemned to inferiority in information warfare capabilities 
for probably several decades," Professor Ball said.


 
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