China's secret military base in Tajikistan revealed by satellites
According to The Telegraph, China is reportedly building a secret military base in Tajikistan. Satellite images have revealed the emerging facility, which is said to be a response to the growing security threat from Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. The British newspaper reports that construction of the base began in 2016 and has since been expanded with features such as a helicopter landing pad, perimeter walls, access roads, and watchtowers.
8:51 PM EDT, July 12, 2024
So far, neither China nor Tajikistan has officially confirmed the base's existence, which is located in the mountains at an altitude of around 13,100 feet, near the border with Afghanistan. However, satellite images show ongoing construction progress. The Telegraph also notes that the base hosts soldiers from both countries, with Beijing supplying Tajikistan with ammunition and technology. There are concerns that China may be extending its influence over other countries in the region.
"The situation is that of a vacuum, and China fills the vacuum," said Parviz Mollojonov, a political scientist and director of International Alert, a British non-governmental organization promoting peace, as cited by the British newspaper. "Since the deterioration of the situation in Afghanistan, China uses the concern of the Tajik government to build in the security sector," he added. He believes that transferring ammunition and weapons is part of broader plans to "create an advanced line of defense," but it could also be for "some other long-term, unknown, covert goals and plans."
chinese bases in the crosshairs of satellites
The Chinese base in Tajikistan is not only monitored by Western satellites. Their "eyes" are also turned toward a facility under construction at the site of the former salt lake Lop Nur in the southeastern part of the Xinjiang region in China, where nuclear tests were once conducted. The facility's purpose, known as China's "Area 51," is unclear, but Western experts believe it serves Beijing in developing and testing space technologies.
In 2021, Ankit Panda of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace suggested that the Chinese might be testing atmospheric aircraft, high-altitude aircraft, high-altitude drones, potential bombers, or other experimental aircraft here. As early as 2020, a mysterious aircraft resembling the American X-37B was observed landing there. Attention is also drawn to the enormous runway, which measures 31,500 feet long.
