No 'defensive systems are capable of dealing with' China's hypersonic missile, Milley says
by Mike Brest, Defense Reporter
November 12, 2021 02:23 PM
The United States would be incapable of defending itself against a hypersonic missile akin to the experimental one China launched over the summer, according to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff .
Gen. Mark Milley acknowledged the gap in the U.S. defense capabilities during a talk at Duke University on Friday afternoon.
Over the summer, China tested “a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile” that “circled the globe before speeding towards its target, demonstrating advanced space capabilities that caught U.S. intelligence by surprise,” the Financial Times reported last month. However, Chinese government officials have denied it.
“What they did a few weeks ago was very significant militarily and from an experiment standpoint in terms of research and development," he said. "That was a system — and I can’t go into the classification part of it — that was a system that traveled at extraordinary rates of speed that no defensive systems are capable of dealing with.”
Milley, who previously called the test a near "Sputnik moment," is one of the few defense officials to comment publicly on the hypersonic test and what it could mean for U.S.-China relations.
These missiles, which Milley says are “of great concern,” can carry both conventional and nuclear payloads, though the Chinese's missile advancements are also significant for the larger picture of the country's long-term goals.
“It is one data point in a much broader picture of the development of the Chinese military,” he said, later noting the U.S. would be “utterly naive” to think the Chinese military’s development is for “purely benign purposes.”
The Chinese have accelerated their nuclear expansion program, according to a recent DOD report on China's military advancements. They could “have up to 700 deliverable nuclear warheads” within roughly five years, while the report alleges the country “likely intends to have at least 1,000 warheads by 2030, exceeding the pace and size the DoD projected in 2020," the report outlines.
Additionally, Gen. John Hyten, outgoing vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently admitted the Chinese military has conducted "hundreds" of hypersonic tests in the last five years, while the U.S. conducted only nine such tests, illustrating why the Department of Department has repeatedly called the adversarial nation its "pacing challenge."
www.washingtonexaminer.com
by Mike Brest, Defense Reporter
November 12, 2021 02:23 PM
The United States would be incapable of defending itself against a hypersonic missile akin to the experimental one China launched over the summer, according to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff .
Gen. Mark Milley acknowledged the gap in the U.S. defense capabilities during a talk at Duke University on Friday afternoon.
Over the summer, China tested “a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile” that “circled the globe before speeding towards its target, demonstrating advanced space capabilities that caught U.S. intelligence by surprise,” the Financial Times reported last month. However, Chinese government officials have denied it.
“What they did a few weeks ago was very significant militarily and from an experiment standpoint in terms of research and development," he said. "That was a system — and I can’t go into the classification part of it — that was a system that traveled at extraordinary rates of speed that no defensive systems are capable of dealing with.”
Milley, who previously called the test a near "Sputnik moment," is one of the few defense officials to comment publicly on the hypersonic test and what it could mean for U.S.-China relations.
These missiles, which Milley says are “of great concern,” can carry both conventional and nuclear payloads, though the Chinese's missile advancements are also significant for the larger picture of the country's long-term goals.
“It is one data point in a much broader picture of the development of the Chinese military,” he said, later noting the U.S. would be “utterly naive” to think the Chinese military’s development is for “purely benign purposes.”
The Chinese have accelerated their nuclear expansion program, according to a recent DOD report on China's military advancements. They could “have up to 700 deliverable nuclear warheads” within roughly five years, while the report alleges the country “likely intends to have at least 1,000 warheads by 2030, exceeding the pace and size the DoD projected in 2020," the report outlines.
Additionally, Gen. John Hyten, outgoing vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently admitted the Chinese military has conducted "hundreds" of hypersonic tests in the last five years, while the U.S. conducted only nine such tests, illustrating why the Department of Department has repeatedly called the adversarial nation its "pacing challenge."
No ‘defensive systems are capable of dealing with’ China’s hypersonic missile, Milley says - Washington Examiner
The United States would be incapable of defending itself against a hypersonic missile akin to the experimental one China launched over the summer, according to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.Gen. Mark Milley acknowledged the gap in the U.S. defense capabilities during a talk at Duke...
www.washingtonexaminer.com
