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Miami Herald
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Miami Herald
US Military Issues Update on China's Rocket Force Threat
The Chinese Rocket Force's increasingly capable missile fleet is a growing threat to U.S. bases and security partners in the Asia-Pacific, top Pentagon officials told lawmakers. Newsweek reached out to the Chinese Foreign Ministry via email for comment outside of office hours. The People's Liberation Army Rocket Force (PLARF) is responsible for China's missile and nuclear arsenal and is a key component of Beijing's efforts to surpass Washington as the region's leading military power. In some areas, the Rocket Force's capabilities have already surpassed those of the United States, such as with its so-called "carrier killer" hypersonic missiles. While these weapons remain untested in combat, they could potentially keep American forces at bay in a wartime scenario. "The PLA's Rocket Force (PLARF) is advancing its long-term modernization plans to enhance its strategic deterrence capabilities," read a written testimony by U.S. Air Force and Space Force leadership prepared for a Senate Appropriations Committee budget hearing. China's missile arsenal is estimated to include 400 ground-launched cruise missiles capable of reaching anywhere within the so-called First Island Chain, a stretch of islands from Japan to Indonesia that Washington considers crucial for containing China's navy in the event of a conflict, such as one over Beijing-claimed Taiwan. China is also believed to field 1,300 intermediate-range ballistic missiles that can strike targets even further afield, threatening the Second Island Chain, which includes U.S. military bases in Guam. Another 500 medium-range missiles put parts of Alaska and U.S.-allied Australia within range, while 900 short-range ballistic missiles could easily cross the narrow Taiwan Strait to strike the self-ruled democracy. The Rocket Force's arsenal also includes 400 intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear warheads anywhere in the world. China's advances in hypersonic missile technology—difficult-to-intercept missiles that travel at over five times the speed of sound—remain a major concern for the Pentagon. In particular, the Dong Feng-17 hypersonic missile may increasingly replace older missile systems and could target foreign bases and naval assets in the Western Pacific, the officials said. Though China still lags far behind the U.S. and Russia in warhead count, the country has rapidly expanded its nuclear forces in recent years, a buildup analysts attribute to President Xi Jinping's emphasis on nuclear deterrence against the U.S. The Department of Defense estimates China surpassed the 600-warhead mark last year and is on track to field over 1,000 operational warheads in the coming years, according to the statement. Beyond missile systems, officials also discussed "kill webs," or networks of sensors, satellites, and weapons that detect threats, share data, and coordinate military responses across air, land, sea, and space. General Chance Saltzman, U.S. Space Force chief of space operations, during the hearing: "My biggest concern is that the kill web, as we call it, that the PRC [People's Republic of China] has put in place allows them to track and target at great range the rest of the joint force in all the other domains. "They've put a very capable ISR [intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance] web together on orbit, and if we're going to protect the joint force, we have to be able to mitigate the effects that they're generating by that constellation. General David Allvin, U.S. Air Force chief of staff: "The PRC is rapidly modernizing its military with the clear intent to reshape the international order—to include nuclear breakout that includes unmatched deterrence capabilities." Citing "unprecedented threats to our homeland," Allvin outlined three top priorities for the service: to defend the homeland by detecting, tracking, and defeating threats; to provide a reliable, safe, and effective nuclear deterrent; and to project power globally—either independently or as part of a joint force. The Pentagon has requested $961.6 billion for its 2026 defense budget—an amount that, supporters note, is roughly half the proportion of the U.S.'s GDP that defense spending consumed during the height of the Cold War. Related Articles China Reveals Fighter Jets Expelled Foreign Military AircraftWho Will Be Next Dalai Lama? Tibetan Leader Set To Detail SuccessionChina's Rival Receives Anti-Ship Boost From USChina Research Ship Spotted on NATO's Doorstep 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
Newsweek
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
US Military Issues Update on China's Rocket Force Threat
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Chinese Rocket Force's increasingly capable missile fleet is a growing threat to U.S. bases and security partners in the Asia-Pacific, top Pentagon officials told lawmakers. Newsweek reached out to the Chinese Foreign Ministry via email for comment outside of office hours. Why It Matters The People's Liberation Army Rocket Force (PLARF) is responsible for China's missile and nuclear arsenal and is a key component of Beijing's efforts to surpass Washington as the region's leading military power. In some areas, the Rocket Force's capabilities have already surpassed those of the United States, such as with its so-called "carrier killer" hypersonic missiles. While these weapons remain untested in combat, they could potentially keep American forces at bay in a wartime scenario. What To Know "The PLA's Rocket Force (PLARF) is advancing its long-term modernization plans to enhance its strategic deterrence capabilities," read a written testimony by U.S. Air Force and Space Force leadership prepared for a Senate Appropriations Committee budget hearing. China's missile arsenal is estimated to include 400 ground-launched cruise missiles capable of reaching anywhere within the so-called First Island Chain, a stretch of islands from Japan to Indonesia that Washington considers crucial for containing China's navy in the event of a conflict, such as one over Beijing-claimed Taiwan. A DF-17 missile on display during a military parade at Tiananmen Square in Beijing on October 1, 2019. A DF-17 missile on display during a military parade at Tiananmen Square in Beijing on October 1, 2019. Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images China is also believed to field 1,300 intermediate-range ballistic missiles that can strike targets even further afield, threatening the Second Island Chain, which includes U.S. military bases in Guam. Another 500 medium-range missiles put parts of Alaska and U.S.-allied Australia within range, while 900 short-range ballistic missiles could easily cross the narrow Taiwan Strait to strike the self-ruled democracy. The Rocket Force's arsenal also includes 400 intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear warheads anywhere in the world. China's advances in hypersonic missile technology—difficult-to-intercept missiles that travel at over five times the speed of sound—remain a major concern for the Pentagon. In particular, the Dong Feng-17 hypersonic missile may increasingly replace older missile systems and could target foreign bases and naval assets in the Western Pacific, the officials said. Though China still lags far behind the U.S. and Russia in warhead count, the country has rapidly expanded its nuclear forces in recent years, a buildup analysts attribute to President Xi Jinping's emphasis on nuclear deterrence against the U.S. The Department of Defense estimates China surpassed the 600-warhead mark last year and is on track to field over 1,000 operational warheads in the coming years, according to the statement. Beyond missile systems, officials also discussed "kill webs," or networks of sensors, satellites, and weapons that detect threats, share data, and coordinate military responses across air, land, sea, and space. What People Are Saying General Chance Saltzman, U.S. Space Force chief of space operations, during the hearing: "My biggest concern is that the kill web, as we call it, that the PRC [People's Republic of China] has put in place allows them to track and target at great range the rest of the joint force in all the other domains. "They've put a very capable ISR [intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance] web together on orbit, and if we're going to protect the joint force, we have to be able to mitigate the effects that they're generating by that constellation. General David Allvin, U.S. Air Force chief of staff: "The PRC is rapidly modernizing its military with the clear intent to reshape the international order—to include nuclear breakout that includes unmatched deterrence capabilities." What Happens Next Citing "unprecedented threats to our homeland," Allvin outlined three top priorities for the service: to defend the homeland by detecting, tracking, and defeating threats; to provide a reliable, safe, and effective nuclear deterrent; and to project power globally—either independently or as part of a joint force. The Pentagon has requested $961.6 billion for its 2026 defense budget—an amount that, supporters note, is roughly half the proportion of the U.S.'s GDP that defense spending consumed during the height of the Cold War.
NBC News
30-05-2025
- Politics
- NBC News
Taiwan looks to U.S. for military support as it builds up defenses against China
PINGTUNG COUNTY, Taiwan — Below a windy lookout, three U.S.-made mobile rocket launchers lurched forward at a military base in Taiwan, preparing for their first live-fire test on the Beijing-claimed island. '3, 2, 1... launch,' a Taiwan military officer counted down over a loudspeaker. A total of 33 rockets were then fired toward the Pacific Ocean, in the opposite direction from the Chinese mainland. Making a thunderous sound, each erupted in bursts of flame and trailed white smoke that arced high into the air. The historic test of the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, or HIMARS, took place this month at an undisclosed location in Pingtung County, on the southern tip of Taiwan, as Taipei scrambles to overhaul its military and get President Donald Trump 's backing amid growing military threats from China. The rocket system could be crucial if Taiwan ever came under attack from Beijing, which has not ruled out the use of force in annexing the self-governing democracy. Manufactured by U.S. defense contractor Lockheed Martin, HIMARS mobile launchers are equipped with guided rockets that have a range of about 185 miles — far enough to reach coastal targets in the southern Chinese province of Fujian on the other side of the Taiwan Strait. It is the same rocket system that Ukrainian forces have been using to target Russian positions — though unlike Ukraine, Taiwan paid the United States more than $1 billion for the weaponry. The island has received 11 of the 29 HIMARS launchers it has purchased, with the rest expected to arrive ahead of schedule next year. Though the U.S. has no formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, which rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims, it is the island's biggest weapons supplier. Billions of dollars in arms deals with the U.S. have helped Taiwan build up asymmetric tools such as drones, missiles and upgraded fighter jets. As China ramps up military and other pressure, Taiwan has also extended compulsory military service to one year from four months, doubled mandatory annual refresher training for reservists to two weeks, and pledged to increase its defense budget to more than 3% of GDP. While the U.S. remains a 'very important' strategic partner, Taipei 'fully recognizes' the need to strengthen its own defense capabilities, said Sun Li-fang, a spokesperson for Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense. 'Ensuring Taiwan's security is our responsibility and our top priority,' he said. 'We take this matter very seriously.' But it is difficult for Taiwan to build a modern fighting force, Sun said, in the face of 'inherently disproportionate' threats from China, whose 2.8-million-strong military is more than 18 times larger than Taiwan's number of active-duty personnel. In the year since Taiwan President Lai Ching-te took office, China has held several rounds of large-scale military exercises that Adm. Samuel J. Paparo, the head of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, warned this month are not drills but 'rehearsals.' The Chinese military also sends warplanes and ships toward Taiwan on near-daily sorties and in recent days held an amphibious landing drill in the Taiwan Strait. To deal with such 'tangible and real' threats, it is 'crucial' that the U.S. and Taiwan continue their military cooperation, Sun said. In addition to HIMARS, the U.S. and Taiwan have advanced their cooperation with an intelligence sharing deal that Sun called a 'game-changer.' 'We typically don't go into detail because intelligence and information sharing are sensitive,' Sun said in his government's first public comments on the subject. 'That said, this kind of intelligence exchange is extremely helpful for us in understanding threats from the enemy and making appropriate defensive deployments.' In congressional testimony this month, a retired U.S. Navy admiral also publicly acknowledged for the first time that there are about 500 U.S. military personnel stationed in Taiwan, more than 10 times the number previously disclosed. Even as it works with the U.S., Taiwan is unsure about the extent of the security commitment from Washington, which has long maintained a policy of 'strategic ambiguity' when it comes to whether U.S. forces would defend the island against a Chinese attack. Further muddling the picture are comments Trump has made about Taiwan, the global leader in advanced semiconductor manufacturing, 'stealing' chip business from the U.S. and not paying enough for its own defense. Officials in Taipei have also been rattled by the collapse of U.S. support for Ukraine as well as the threat of steep tariffs on Taiwan's exports, which Trump has set at 32% in addition to a 10% baseline. 'You have different voices emerging from the United States, so that creates more uncertainties for Taiwanese,' said Andrew Yang, Taiwan's former minister of national defense. 'Which voices or narratives should we listen to?' Reservist Jason Chu, 30, said that among those around him, there was a 'growing' sense of responsibility to defend Taiwan. 'The biggest difference lies in our mindset,' said Chu, an engineer. He said that while many people in Taiwan most likely think of their training as a duty at first, often they later begin to think of it as protecting their country. People in Taiwan have watched with concern as war drags on Ukraine, another democracy targeted by a larger, autocratic neighbor — and some have even gone to join the fight against Russia. Tony Lu went to Ukraine in 2022 first as a volunteer, then as a fighter. He said he thinks people in Taiwan need to be ready. 'No one wants war — I don't want it either,' he said. 'But we don't have a choice.'
The Mainichi
29-05-2025
- Business
- The Mainichi
China removes remaining buoy from Japan's exclusive economic zone
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- China has removed a buoy it had installed inside Japan's exclusive economic zone off a remote southwestern island, the Japan Coast Guard said Wednesday, meaning all such objects that had irked Tokyo have been cleared from its EEZ. The Japanese government said in December that it spotted a new buoy south of Yonaguni Island, which is located about 100 kilometers from Taiwan. But on its website on Wednesday, the coast guard referred to the buoy east of Taiwan as "nonexistent." According to a Japanese government source, Chinese ships began work to remove the buoy on Tuesday and it was no longer there on Wednesday. In an apparent gesture to improve strained ties with the neighboring country, China said in February it had moved a buoy placed inside Japan's EEZ near the Tokyo-controlled, Beijing-claimed Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea. The Japanese government has repeatedly called for the removal of the buoys. The EEZ extends some 370 kilometers from Japanese shores.
Miami Herald
20-05-2025
- Miami Herald
China Unveils Game-Changing First Drone ‘Mothership'
China's new drone "mothership" is set to take flight, according to the country's state broadcaster, which touted the aircraft as a game changer in drone warfare. Observers, however, have noted key vulnerabilities and said the behemoth, teased at China's flagship air show in November, amounts to "propaganda." Newsweek contacted the Pentagon for comment by email. The People's Liberation Army continues its rapid buildup, with an eye to supplanting the U.S. as the leading military power in the Asia-Pacific. Its warship count now exceeds the U.S. Navy's, and it possesses growing anti-access/area-denial capabilities, such as its vast missile fleet. China has also been investing heavily in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and swarm technologies in a bid to achieve air superiority in a wartime scenario-for instance, an invasion of Beijing-claimed Taiwan. Built by the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China, the Jiu Tian drone has a wingspan of 82 feet and runs on a turbofan engine, China Central Television said in a Saturday broadcast. It has a maximum range of 4,350 miles and a 15-kilometer (9.3 miles) ceiling, and it can exceed 435 miles per hour. What sets the aircraft apart is its ability to launch smaller drones mid-flight from both sides of its fuselage. With a maximum payload of six tons, it can carry up to 100 small UAVs, including loitering drones-shown in a computer-animated promotional video pouring out of the plane like bees from a hive. In addition to swarm-launching, the drone can be armed with a mix of air-to-air, anti-ship and air-to-ground missiles, as well as 1,000-kilogram (about 2,200-pound) guided bombs. The Jiu Tian is also built for modularity. Its payloads can be swapped out in under two hours, depending on the mission-electronic warfare, strike and support, emergency rescue-making it suitable for a range of civilian and military roles. It can also serve as a communications relay for the smaller drones it launches, allowing remote operators to control them from behind the front lines using a man-in-the-loop system. That could let short-range drones operate well beyond their typical limits. Still, the drone carrier's size presents a tempting target for modern air defense systems, meaning it would likely need to rely on air suppression support. Additionally, even at its stated maximum altitude, the drone would be well within the range of several modern air-defense systems, including the U.S.'s THAAD and Patriot PAC-3, Taiwan's Sky Bow III, Japan's Aegis BMD, and South Korea's KM-SAM Block II. User @MCCCANM, a self-described former U.S. Air Force instructor with 30,000 followers, wrote on X, formerly Twitter: "I'm not a fighter pilot, but this is like trying to sneak into near-peer enemy airspace with a formation of KC-10s [retired tanker and cargo aircraft]. It's not remotely survivable...a gigantic missile magnet. This is just classic propaganda." The "mothership" will conduct its first test flight at the end of June, CCTV reported. Related Articles New Microbe Discovered Aboard Chinese Space StationMap Shows US Command Ship in Pacific Amid China Navy ChallengeFirst Cracks Emerge in US-China Trade TruceFrontline US Aircraft Carrier Near China Prepares for Military Action 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
