A federal complaint has been issued by Washington with China over “unauthorized laser activity” which has allegedly injured two US airmen. According to the report from Breaking Defense, US officials are confident that China is behind these lasers.
They say that the lasers are coming from the direction of a Chinese military installation in the African nation of Djibouti. This base is China’s first overseas military facility and is located near a US Base. According to Dana White, a Pentagon spokesperson, 10 laser-related incidents have taken place in the last few weeks. She also said, “It’s enough that we’re concerned that we demarched them, and asked them to investigate. We’re confident.”
“This sends a signal to Africa and globally that China has advanced weapons and is prepared to use them,” Dean Cheng, an expert on the Chinese military at the Heritage Foundation, told Mcleary. “The lack of an American response will be exploited as a warning that not even America dares stand up to China–so neither should you.”
Major Sheryll Klinkel, another Pentagon spokesperson described the laser as military grade and said the recent incident resulted in minor injuries for the two pilots landing a C-130 at the US base in Djibouti. China is a signatory to the 1995 Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons under which it is prohibited to use such weapons against humans. China has denied any involvement in the recent activity.
“We’ve raised concerns directly with the Chinese about this,” White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said on Thursday regarding the missile deployment. “There will be near-term and long-term consequences.” We will have to wait and see how the story develops before we can say how either country will react.
Watch the full video report here:
