Published: | Updated:

WHAT IS THE ISSUE INVOLVING MILITARY LASERS BETWEEN THE US AND CHINA?

According to US officials, Chinese nationals have on multiple occasions shone military-grade laser pointers at US pilots operating out of the American base in Djibouti.

Officials have issued a formal diplomatic complaint and demanded Beijing investigate a series of incidents dating back several weeks, spokeswoman Dana White said in May.

'They are very serious incidents,' Ms White said.

'This activity poses a true threat to our airmen.'

In one case, two pilots on a C-130 cargo plane suffered minor eye injuries as they came in to land at the base in the Horn of Africa nation.

Located at Djibouti international airport, the US military's Camp Lemonnier base is its only permanent facility in Africa. 

It is used largely for counter-terrorism operations in East Africa and Yemen.

China last year opened a naval base in Djibouti, only a few miles (kilometers) from the US facility, marking the first overseas base for Beijing's rapidly growing military.

Ms White said she was 'confident' that whoever had shone the high-powered lasers was Chinese.

In April the Federal Aviation Administration published a warning to pilots to use extreme caution in the area.

'There have been multiple lazing events involving a high-power laser in the vicinity,' the warning reads.

Advertisement

Read articles that feature this panel

China develops deadly 'Silent Hunter' lasers that can destroy drones from 1,000ft away as tensions soar with the US

China's largest state-owned arms dealer, China Poly Group, tested the gun at last week's International Exhibition of Weapons Systems and...

US Army is developing a the 'most powerful' laser in history which will vaporize targets using short pulses and produce powerful signals to...

Current laser systems fire a continuous beam until a catches fire, but the Tactical Ultrashort Pulsed Laser for Army Platforms will emit...

Most watched News videos