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The Chinese military may soon use a high-altitude, supersonic espionage drone, according to a leaked U.S. military assessment, the Washington Post reported late on Tuesday.
The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency’s top-secret report was referenced by the newspaper.
The document, which Reuters was unable to independently corroborate or verify, is said to include satellite images dated Aug. 9 that depicts two WZ-8 rocket-propelled reconnaissance drones at an air base in eastern China, approximately 350 miles (560 km) inland from Shanghai.
According to the newspaper, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) had “almost certainly” established its first unmanned aerial vehicle unit at the base, which is under the jurisdiction of the Eastern Theatre Command, the arm of the Chinese military in charge of upholding Chinese sovereignty claims over Taiwan.
An inquiry for comments was not immediately answered by the American Defence Department. One couldn’t immediately get in touch with the Chinese authorities for comment.
The Massachusetts Air National Guard member who was detained last week, according to The Washington Post, allegedly shared a wealth of pictures of sensitive documents on the Discord chat app. This is how the newspaper learned about the program’s evaluation.
When the leaks first became widely known earlier this month, Washington was alarmed about the potential harm they may have done. The incident made the US look bad by exposing its snooping on friends and alleged Ukrainian military weaknesses.
The recent meeting between U.S. House Representative Kevin McCarthy and Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen angered Beijing. Taiwan is the most significant and delicate matter in China’s ties with the United States, which it claims is one of its provinces and is democratically governed. Beijing’s sovereignty claims are rejected by Taiwan’s government.
