China Has No Information on Military Training Facility in Cuba

On Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning affirmed that her country is not aware of an alleged negotiation between Beijing and Havana for the installation of a military facility for joint training.

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"I don't know the matter you are talking about. We hope that the relevant parties will focus their energy on things that benefit mutual trust-building," she said during a press conference at which she was addressing the prospects for China-U.S. relations.

Previously, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) published a report stating that China and Cuba are discussing the possibility of building a military training facility in the northern part of the Caribbean island.

According to U.S. officials cited by the WSJ, the facility would allow China to permanently station troops in the northern part of the island and expand its espionage activities.

Earlier in June, the White House rejected another WSJ report claiming that China and Cuba had reached a secret agreement to establish a spying facility on the island.

On that occasion, the WSJ said that such a facility would enable Chinese intelligence services to monitor ship traffic and spy on electronic communications throughout the southeastern United States, where many military bases are located.

The Wall Street Journal's latest claims come a day after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken had a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, which was expected to ease tensions between the two countries.

On Monday, Xi reaffirmed that his country "does not seek to challenge the U.S., and "similarly, the United States needs to respect China and not harm China's legitimate rights and interests."

For his part, Blinken stated that the U.S. does not seek a new Cold War, does not aim to change China's system, and does not support Taiwan's independence.