For SOUTHCOM Chief, International Partnerships Key to Out-Competing China in Latin America

U.S. Army Gen. Laura Richardson, head of the U.S. Southern Command, participated in a Center for Strategic and International Studies event on Friday, where she said partnerships with Latin American countries in space could help push back against the threat China poses.

Richardson, who had accompanied NASA Administrator Bill Nelson during his recent tour of South America, said such partnerships, which she described as “like-minded democracies working together,” would help the United States out-compete its adversaries, the Department of Defense website reported.

A 2022 CSIS study says that China has established multiple ground stations in South America. Ground stations are the terrestrial component of space infrastructure and work to enable the operation of various spacecraft, including satellites.

The proximity of China’s ground stations to the United States, however, has raised fears they may be used for civilian as well as military and espionage purposes.

Among the South American countries hosting Chinese space facilities is Argentina, which signed on to the Artemis Accords during Nelson’s recent visit.