AMERICAS WORRY ABOUT CHINESE NUCLEAR BALLISTIC MISSILES PROGRAM TO MANUF...

China Will Upgrade Its Nuclear Warheads To 1500.

Wednesday, November 30, 2022.

China is expanding its nuclear force and is on track to nearly quadruple the number of warheads it has by 2035, rapidly closing its gap with the United States (US). That was the sound of the Pentagon report released Tuesday local time.

In its report, the Pentagon said China's nuclear arsenal was set to more than triple to 1,500 nuclear warheads. The report also highlighted the increasing sophistication of the country's air force.

Washington has identified Beijing as its most important challenge to the US, and its annual report on China's military emphasizes increasing its nuclear and conventional forces.

"The Department of Defense estimates (China's) operational nuclear warhead stockpile has exceeded 400," the report said.

"If China continues its pace of nuclear expansion, it will likely have a stockpile of around 1,500 warheads by 2035," the report continued.

But that figure still lags behind the arsenals of the US and Russia, which each have several thousand nuclear warheads.

China is also working to modernize its ballistic missiles that can deliver nuclear weapons, launching some 135 in tests during 2021. According to the report, the number exceeds the number of similar tests from around the world combined but excluding those fired in conflicts.

"And Beijing's air force is making strides, quickly catching up with Western air forces," the report said.

A senior US defense official, speaking before the report's release, said China's air force was trying to advance quickly on all fronts, including on operated equipment as well as pilots and other personnel.

The report also takes aim at the way China is using its military in the Indo-Pacific region, saying that China has adopted more coercive and aggressive actions.

That is especially the case around Taiwan, the self-governing democratic island that Beijing claims as its own.

A visit by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in August angered China, which reacted with the largest and most aggressive drills around the island since the 1990s.

Both sides have agreed to lower the temperature. But a senior US defense official said while Chinese military activity around Taiwan has decreased, it is still higher than before.

"Beijing established a kind of new normal in terms of the level of military activity around Taiwan following the speaker's visit," the official said.

"While we do not see an imminent invasion, clearly, the higher level of intimidation and coercion activity around Taiwan is a source of concern," the official added.

source : international.sindonews.com

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