China’s Ministry of State Security reported Tuesday that it had retrieved spying devices planted in the ocean, including surface-level and deep-sea instruments, some described as underwater “lighthouses” potentially guiding foreign submarines. According to the ministry’s official WeChat account, these devices were actively gathering data that could potentially “pre-set the field for battle.”
Among the recovered items were several that floated along China’s maritime boundaries, monitoring activities in real time, and others that could guide intruding submarines within Chinese waters. The ministry has not disclosed the devices’ specific origins or precise locations.
“National security forces have seized a variety of special technical devices used for spying on marine information and data, hidden in the vastness of the sea,” the state security ministry said, without specifying where the devices were found.
“Some act as ‘secret agents,’ drifting and floating with the waves, monitoring the situation in our territorial waters in real time. Some act as underwater ‘lighthouses,’ indicating the direction for foreign submarines that have invaded our waters.”
This announcement comes amid heightened tensions in the South China Sea, where China and the Philippines have engaged in recent confrontations over contested areas. These disputes elevate the risk of broader involvement by the US, which is treaty-bound to defend the Philippines if attacked. Additionally, China’s recent military drills around Taiwan, simulating potential strikes, have sparked further international concern.
China asserts its claim to nearly the entire South China Sea, a region also claimed by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. The country’s stance on Taiwan remains similarly firm, reiterating a refusal to renounce force in its claim of sovereignty over the self-governing island.
With China and the U.S. escalating their submarine capabilities, security analysts anticipate an arms race in nuclear-powered submarine technology through the decade’s end. Meanwhile, China’s security ministry has vowed to counter foreign espionage efforts in the deep sea, defending what it describes as its sovereign and developmental interests in the maritime domain.
Melissa Enoch
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