China upgrades Djibouti base, expanding signal monitoring across Middle East and Africa

Commercial satellite imagery reveals that China has fitted its Djibouti base with new antennas, satellite communications gear and other signal-collection assets. The enhancements are designed to broaden the base’s capacity to observe military movements across the Middle East and Africa, a region currently seeing heightened activity from the Houthis, Iran, the United States and Israel. The Center for Strategic and International Studies notes that two communications compounds added since mid-2024 likely form part of a larger command architecture, strengthening links between Chinese units in the region and command centers in China.

While the exact extent of signal interception remains unclear, the equipment can capture a wide range of frequencies, offering a more detailed picture of the operating environment. The base, opened in 2017 near the strategic Bab al-Mandeb Strait, sits within ten miles of U.S., French, Italian and Japanese installations, potentially allowing China to gather valuable intelligence on their operations.