http://www.defensetech.org/archives/002635.html

As has been widely reported, China plans to construct its own
global satellite navigation network. Or so it would appear. No one’s quite sure.
The system, dubbed Compass, is mired in confusion, with possible intentions
ranging from a modest upgrade of their regional Beidou system to a full blown
competitor to GPS and Galileo.


China invested in the European Galileo system through the Galileo Joint
Undertaking. Remarkably, this investment will not allow the Chinese any role in
Galileo when it transitions to the Supervisory Authority at the end of the year,
likely due to the sensitive nature of Galileo’s encrypted signals. It’s no
surprise, then, that China would feel betrayed by its partnership in the Joint
Undertaking. Compass may be a result of China’s desire to strike out on its own–
or a bluff aimed at wrangling a more substantive role in Galileo