The mysterious Chinese space base in Patagonia that worries Donald Trump

Wrapped in mystery, the space station that China built in Neuquén and which was inaugurated in April of last year it generates agitation in the Donald Trump government. In the United States, they suspect their true purpose: officials and specialists have expressed concern, fueling conspiracy theories.

When China built the military space station in the Patagonia region, it promised to include a reception center to explain the purpose of its powerful antenna of 16 floors. However, the center is built behind a 2.5 meter high barbed wire fence, which surrounds the entire complex and visits are by appointment only.

The declared objective of the station is to observe and explore the space in a peaceful way and, according to the Chinese media, would have played a key role in the pioneering landing of a spacecraft on this hidden side of the country. of the Moon in January. But the 200-hectare site operates without the apparent supervision of Argentine authorities, according to hundreds of pages of Argentine government documents obtained by Reuters and reviewed by experts in international law.

The former Foreign Minister of President Mauricio Macri, Susana Malcorra, confirmed in an interview that Argentina does not supervise the operations. In 2016, it revised the Chinese Space Station's agreement to include a stipulation that it would only be for civilian use.

The agreement obliges China to inform Argentina of its activities at the station but does not foresee any mechanism of conformity allowing the authorities to guarantee that it is not used for military purposes, declared experts in international law consulted by the news agency. .

"It does not matter what is written in the contract or in the agreement," said Juan Uriburu, an Argentine lawyer who has worked in two large joint ventures in Argentina and China. "How do you make sure they respect the rules?", I would say, given that one of the actors involved in the agreements is directly under the Chinese Army, it's at least intriguing see that the Argentine government has not addressed this issue more accurately, "he said.

China's space program is led by his army, the People's Liberation Party (EPL). The Patagonian station is managed by the China Monitoring and Launch Satellite General Monitoring Center (CLTC), which informs the PLA's strategic support force.

Beijing insists that its space program has peaceful aims and its Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the Argentine station was reserved for civilian use. He also said the station was open to the public and the media. "The suspicions of some people have hidden motives ", explained the ministry.

Consulted on how it ensures that the station is not used for military purposes, the Argentine space agency CONAE said that the agreement reached between the two countries expressed its commitment to "l & # 39; 39, peaceful use "of the project.

CONAE also stated that the station's radio broadcasts were also monitored, but radio astronomy experts explained that the Chinese could Easily hide data illicit in these transmissions or add encrypted channels at the frequencies agreed with Argentina.

Worry about espionage

In the United States, they were worried about what they saw as China's strategy for "militarize" the space, according to a manager, who added that there were reasons to be skeptical in the face of Beijing's insistence that the Argentine base was strictly intended for exploration.

Other US officials who spoke with Reuters They expressed similar concerns. "The Patagonia land station, secretly agreed upon by a corrupt and financially vulnerable government ten years ago, is another example of opaque Chinese chords and predators that undermine the sovereignty of host countries, "said Garrett Marquis, spokesman for the National Security Council of the White House.

Radio astronomy experts have said that US concerns about espionage were exaggerated and that the station is probably what had been announced, a scientific venture with Argentina, even though the station's 35 meter diameter disc could spy on foreign satellites.

Tony Beasley, director of the US National Radio Astronomy Observatory, said the station could, in theory, "listen" to the satellites other governments that could collect confidential data. But this kind of listening could be done with a much less sophisticated material.

"Anyone can do that, basically, I can do it with a plate in my garden," said Beasley. "I do not know if there is anything particularly sinister or disturbing about any part of the Chinese radio network in Argentina," he added.

Argentine officials have defended the station with the argument that the agreement with China This is not different the one signed with the European Space Agency (ESA), which built a station in Malargüe. Both have leases free of tax for 50 years. Argentine scientists theoretically have access to 10% of the antenna time at both stations.

The legal experts who reviewed the documents noted a notable difference: ESA is a civil agency. "All ESA governments respect democratic rules," Uriburu said. "The party is not the state, but it is not the case in China, the party is the state".

In the United States, NASA, like ESA, is a civilian agency, while the US military has its own space command for military or national security missions. In some cases, NASA and the military have collaborated, said Jonathan McDowell, astronomer at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. "The line is sometimes blurry, but that's the exception," he said.

"Black Box"

In Las Lajas, a town of 7,000 inhabitants located about 40 minutes by car from the Chinese station, in the province of Neuquén, the antenna is a source of Stupor and suspicion.

"These people do not allow access, do not let him see"said Alfredo Garrido, a 51-year-old trader. My opinion is that this is not a scientific research base, but a Chinese military base. "Among the conspiracy theories the wildest that was heard stands out: that the base was used to build an atomic bomb.

The road from Las Lajas to the space station is dry and dusty. There is no sign that indicates the existence of the station. The wide antenna is suddenly visible after a curve in the stone path from the main road. The huge disk is the only sign of human life for miles around.

The station went into service last April. Thirty Chinese employees they work and live in a place that does not employ Argentines, according to the Mayor of Las Lajas, María Espinosa, who added that the base was not good for the local economy.

Other locals in Las Lajas said that they seldom saw any of the city's train stations, except when staff occasionally went to their Chinese supermarket.

The journalistic team of Reuters He asked to access the station through CONAE, the provincial government and the Chinese Embbady. But CONAE said that could not approve a visit in the short term, but I was planning one for the media. The agency added that students from neighboring cities had already visited the site.

Unattended

When Congress debated the space station in 2015, during the presidency of Cristina Kirchner, opposition lawmakers were wondering why it was not stipulated that it was only for civilian use. However, Congress approved the agreement.

When Macri took office in 2015, he ordered the review of a series of agreements that the former president had signed with China. He feared that the agreement on the space station does not explicitly state that it should be reserved for civilians, said Malcorra, former foreign minister, who went to Beijing in 2016 to return at work.

Malcorra said that he was limited in his ability to revise the agreement because it had already been signed by Cristina. However, the Chinese agreed to include the key stipulation: do it for civilian use. She wanted to hold a press conference with her Chinese colleague in Beijing to let him know.

"It was something that I had asked to do so that there was no doubt or hidden agenda, and that our people knew that we had acted in this way," he said. from his home in Spain. But still below one key point: supervision.

"It was impossible to do this after the level of recognition of this agreement, which was recognized, accepted and approved by Congress," said Malcorra. "I would have written the agreement in another way," he added.