China is said to have successfully tested the system as early as August. This took US forces completely by surprise. But the idea is not new. Research into so-called “Fractional Orbital Bombardment Systems” was already underway during the Cold War.
But instead of a simple nuclear weapon vehicle, the Chinese weapon is a hypersonic aircraft.
Taylor Fravel, a Chinese nuclear weapons policy expert who was unaware of the test, said a hypersonic glide vehicle armed with a nuclear warhead could help China “negate” US anti-missile systems designed to destroy incoming ballistic missiles.
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“Supersonic planers fly on lower trajectories and can maneuver in flight, making them difficult to track and destroy,” said Fravel, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Concerns about China’s nuclear capabilities grow as Beijing continues to build its conventional armed forces and engage in increasingly assertive military activities near Taiwan.
Tensions between the US and China have increased after the Biden administration took a tough stance on Beijing, which Washington has accused of being overly hostile.
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:quality(80)/cdn-kiosk-api.telegraaf.nl/cb576bea-2f23-11ec-b1b5-02d1dbdc35d1.jpg "Province in the mist with ‘fake reviews’ | Inland")
