On July 9, 1870, the Prussian military attaché in Paris, Count Waldersee, reported to Berlin that, France had started preparations for a big war. Only hours after the French government had begun the mobilization of French troops on July 14, 1870, the attaché reported that troops had been mobilized. In the age of satellite reconnaissance, military attaches no longer have the chance to make a similar discovery. They are concerned instead with questions of detail, using open and not-so-open sources, such as handbooks and service regulations. Some countries also charge their military attaches with sales of weapons. The military attaché of the US embassy in Berlin, for example, promotes sales of defense articles, services, and training to Germany.