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According to American officials, Chinese satellite companies associated with the country’s military are supplying images of Yemeni rebels in Yemen, targeting warships and international ships in the Red Sea.
The Trump administration repeatedly warned Beijing, according to US officials.
“The United States has raised our concerns to the Chinese government over and over supporting Chang Gang Satellite Technology to get Beijing to take action,” a senior State Department official said.
Officials added that China “ignored” concerns. He also told the Financial Times that despite Washington’s warnings it was CGSTL’s actions and “unspoken support for Beijing.”
“We urge our partners to judge the Chinese Communist Party and Chinese companies about their actions, not empty words,” the authorities said.
Concerns about the CGSTL came in the midst of deepening the trade war between Washington and Beijing after President Donald Trump slapped a huge new tariff on imports from China.
After Israel responded to the October 7 attack on Palestinian extremist groups and launched a war with Hamas in 2023, another Iranian support group, Houthis began attacking ships on the Red Sea, an important maritime route for world trade and the US Navy.
The US has escalated attacks on the position of rebel groups in Yemen in recent weeks. This includes large military strikes that were subject to Signalgate leaks and signaled campaign escalation.
China has expressed concern about the Houtis attack. The Biden administration urged Beijing to use leverage with Iran to curb the Houssis, but his officials saw no evidence that Beijing had done so.
Trump has made instability in the Red Sea a priority amid concerns that the Houches continue to pose a threat to the global economy.
“Beijing should take this priorities seriously when considering future support for CGSTL,” a US official said.
Asked about US claims about the satellite company, the Chinese embassy in Washington said it was “unaware of the relevant circumstances.”
The CGSTL was previously under US scrutiny and was one of the groups that were sanctioned in 2023, allegedly providing high-resolution satellite images to the Wagner Group, an army of Russian mercenaries who advocated a full Ukraine aggression.
The Chinese company was established in 2014 as a joint venture between the state government of Jilling and the branch of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in the state capital, Changchun.
“Chang Kang is actually one of a handful of “ocean” commercial Chinese satellite companies that are deeply embedded in the military fusion ecosystem, providing global surveillance capabilities for both civilian and military customers.”
Under China’s military fusion program, businesses need to share technology with the PLA when the government orders.
Matthew Bruzzese, a Chinese defense expert at Bluepath Labs, a consulting firm that works with the US government, said last year that CGSTL has 100 satellites in orbit, but plans to win 300 by the end of 2025.
Brutzese said the CGSTL has “close ties” with the Chinese government, the Communist Party and the military. However, he has few public mentions of Platai from 2020, suggesting that he was “more wary of publicly discussing these connections.”
In recent years, the United States has imposed sanctions on dozens of Chinese commercial groups suspected of ties with the military.
Brutzese added that CGSTL provided briefings to Chinese officials on applications that include those of “military information” and demonstrated the technology before several top PLA officers, including Zhang Youxia, the top Chinese military general after President Xi Jinping.
The US concern about CGSTL is because the pentagon is increasingly focusing on China’s military operations in space.
The pentagon said China put 200 satellites into orbit in 2023, second only to the US. Beijing added that it is also exporting satellite technology, including remote sensing satellites developed in the country. This is the same type of technology deployed by CGSTL.
