China Has A Better Way

The Strategy Page ^ | 01/13/2010 | The Strategy Page

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

China has followed a different path in developing strategic weapons. It hasn't. Although the technology was available from Russia, China has, instead, concentrated on creating more accurate, and cheaper, shorter range weapons. This appears to be in recognition of the fact that a war involving nuclear armed ICBMs would be a losing proposition, with no winners. This would be especially true against the United States. In effect, China has dropped out that arms race. With only a few dozen ICBMs, none of which can reach all of the United States, China sees most of the long range ballistic missiles it has as non-nuclear weapons. The only Chinese missiles of this type, armed with nuclear warheads, are aimed at Russia, and perhaps Japan, the two nations that might, for historical reasons, be tempted to threaten China with nuclear attack. Meanwhile, China has created a line of shorter range ballistic and cruise missiles meant for non-nuclear war. Take, for example, the continued rumors about the DF-21 ballistic missile being equipped with a high-explosive warhead and a guidance system that can find and hit a aircraft carrier at sea. The DF-21 has a range of over 1800 kilometers and can also haul a 300 kiloton nuclear warhead. It's a two stage, 15 ton, solid fuel rocket that could carry a half ton penetrating, high-explosive warhead, along with the special guidance system (a radar and image recognition system).

[American Constitutionalist]

I do not believe for a minute that China is giving up it's long range nuclear missile plans..... maybe this report is to give us a false sense of security to drop our guard...