Djibouti base upgrade may offer PLA window on foreign military Middle East operations

Commercial imagery reveals two new communication sites built near foreign military bases in East Africa, US think tank says

Beijing opened the Djibouti facility in 2017, describing it as a support base for naval escort, peacekeeping and humanitarian missions. It has since become a hub for Chinese naval operations in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea.

The upgrade could be particularly significant as US Air Force budget documents describe nearby Chabelley Airfield as the only location in East Africa from which armed intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assets are authorised to operate.

Meanwhile in August, Japan began flying P-1 maritime patrol aircraft from its Djibouti facility for counter-piracy and Middle East information-gathering missions.