11/9/2022 0 Comments Speed of sound ft s![]() ![]() The Chinese embassy said it was “not aware” of the missile test. The US recently said it would quadruple its nuclear warheads at least 1,000 weapons this decade. The hypersonic test comes as China rapidly expands its nuclear forces, in a way that suggests it is abandoning the “minimum deterrence” posture it has maintained for decades. That has been reinforced by Beijing successfully combining an orbital system with a hypersonic weapon that can shoot a missile. ![]() But the July 27 test showed that the People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force was making even faster progress than many had projected. US officials are well aware that China is ahead of the Pentagon in hypersonic weapons. Moscow deployed a system called “fractional orbital bombardment system” during the cold war, but it was less advanced and did not carry a manoeuvrable hypersonic glide vehicle. The orbital bombardment system gives China more ways to hit US targets. The NSC added that the US would “continue to maintain the capabilities to defend and deter against a range of threats” from China. “This also builds on our concern about many military capabilities that the People’s Republic of China continues to pursue.” “This development is concerning to us as it should be to all who seek peace and stability in the region and beyond,” said a spokesperson for the National Security Council. The White House declined to comment on the countermeasure, but said it remained concerned about the July 27 test, which was first reported by the Financial Times last month. Russia and the US have also pursued hypersonic weapons for years, but experts say the firing of countermeasures is the latest evidence that China’s efforts are significantly more advanced than either the Kremlin or the Pentagon. Others think it was a countermeasure to destroy missile defence systems so that they could not shoot down the hypersonic weapon during wartime. Some Pentagon experts believe the projectile was an air-to-air missile. They are also debating the purpose of the projectile, which was fired by the hypersonic vehicle with no obvious target of its own, before plunging into the water. Military experts have been poring over data related to the test to understand how China mastered the technology. ![]()
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