China on Sunday successfully conducted a land-based, mid-course anti-ballistic missile test on Sun within the country’s borders.
This is a defensive test and is not aimed at any country, Chinese daily Global Times quoted the Defense Ministry as saying.
Conducted at night within the Chinese border, the test reached its desired objective, the ministry said in a statement.
A similar test was held in February last year, according to an announcement of the Chinese Defense Ministry at the time.
The latest test brings the tally of publicly announced Chinese land-based antiballistic missile technical tests to six.
#China successfully tested an advanced, anti-ballistic missile weapons system yesterday, a/c to the country’s Defence Ministry. The land-based test focused on a “mid-course” (outside earth’s atmosphere?) target. Ministry said it “achieved its expected purpose” & was “defensive”.
— Stephen McDonell (@StephenMcDonell) June 20, 2022
China is expanding its nuclear arsenal much more quickly than anticipated, narrowing the gap with the United States, the Pentagon said in a report.
China could have 700 deliverable nuclear warheads by 2027, and could top 1,000 by 2030 — an arsenal two-and-a-half times the size of what the Pentagon predicted only a year ago, according to the report.
The People’s Republic of China (PRC) “is investing in, and expanding, the number of its land-, sea-, and air-based nuclear delivery platforms and building the infrastructure necessary to support this major expansion of its nuclear forces.
Read more: China’s hypersonic nuclear missiles become Biden’s worst nightmare
China Aircraft carrier
Beijing on Friday launched a high-tech aircraft carrier which was both designed and built in China in a major military milestone.
Fujian was released into the sea from a port in Shanghai, Chinese daily Global Times reported.
“The Fujian (hull 18) is China’s 1st fully domestically developed aircraft carrier with electromagnetic catapults,” the report said. The powerful aircraft carrier has “a displacement of more than 80,000 tons.”
Read more: China producing 1000 nuclear missiles: Pentagon
China launched its first aircraft carrier Liaoning (hull 16) in 2012, while Beijing commissioned its second aircraft carrier Shandong (hull 17) in 2019.
Anadolu with additional input by GVS News Deskrd