A Chinese Military Base In The Azores?

Red Flag Over The Atlantic -- Gordon G. Chang, NRO

China is angling to take over a U.S. airbase in the Azores.
On June 27, a plane carrying Wen Jiabao made a “technical” stop on the island of Terceira, in the Azores. Following an official greeting by Alamo Meneses, the regional secretary of environment of the sea, the Chinese premier spent four hours touring the remote Portuguese outpost in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

Wen’s Terceira walkabout, which followed a four-nation visit to South America, largely escaped notice at the time, but alarm bells should have immediately gone off in Washington and in European capitals. For one thing, Wen’s last official stop on the trip was Santiago, the capital of Chile. Flights from Chile to China normally cross the Pacific, not the Atlantic, so there was no reason for his plane to be near the Azores. Moreover, those who visit the Azores generally favor other islands in the out-of-the-way chain.

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My Comment: Would the Chinese lease a former airbase in the middle of the Atlantic .... hmmmmm .... definitely. Would the military chiefs in the U.S. and Europe be concerned .... definitely. Will it happen? Hmmmm .... probably not.