Cina - Topic Ufficiale

[TT-1 Pinto]

Rieccoli !!!

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Sixteen Chinese military planes flew into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ) on Sunday (Oct. 3), marking the third intrusion this month.
Eight People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) Shenyang J-16 fighter jets, four Sukhoi Su-30 fighter planes, two Shaanxi Y-8 anti-submarine warfare planes, and two KJ-500 airborne early warning and control aircraft were tracked in the southwest corner of Taiwan’s ADIZ, according to the Ministry of National Defense (MND).

... taiwannews.com.tw ... https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4305208 ... 

Un editoriale ... globaltimes.cn ... https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202110/1235605.shtml ... 

[TT-1 Pinto]

A Sud-Est di Okinawa ...

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Two U.S. carrier strike groups drilled with the United Kingdom’s Carrier Strike Group 21 (CSG21) and a Japanese big-deck warship over the weekend in a major naval exercise in the waters off the southeast of Okinawa, Japan.
The exercise involved six different navies – the U.S Navy, the U.K. Royal Navy, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, the Royal Netherlands Navy, the Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal New Zealand Navy – making up a total of 17 surface ships, which included four aircraft carriers.
The exercise enhanced JMSDF tactical skills and interoperability with the participating navies, the JMSDF said in a news release (*) on Monday.

... news.usni.org ... https://news.usni.org/2021/10/04/u-s-u-k-aircraft-carriers-drill-with-japanese-big-deck-warship-in-the-western-pacific ...

(*) ... mod.go.jp/msdf ... https://www.mod.go.jp/msdf/sf/english/news/10/1004.html ...

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[TT-1 Pinto]

Nel contempo ... velivoli F-35B del Corpo dei Marines hanno operato dal ponte di volo della nave giapponese Izumo ...

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Two Marine Corps F-35B Lighting II Joint Strike Fighters took off and landed on Japan’s largest warship, JS Izumo (DDH-183), on Oct.3, marking the first time that fixed-wing aircraft have operated off a Japanese warship since World War II.
The two F-35Bs from the “Bats” of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 242 flew from Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, to operate on Izumo to test modifications to the big deck warship so the short takeoff, vertical landing (STOVL) version of the F-35 can operate from the ship.
“This verification is the first time for an F-35B fighter to land on a [Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force] vessel, and Japan is working to improve its capabilities in the maritime and air domains by steadily upgrading the Izumo-class destroyer in order to acquire the ability to operate STOVL aircraft,” reads a Tuesday statement (*) from the JMSDF.

... news.usni.org ... https://news.usni.org/2021/10/05/video-japans-largest-warship-launches-u-s-marine-f-35s-first-fighters-to-fly-from-japanese-ship-since-wwii ...

(*) ... mod.go.jp/msdf ... https://www.mod.go.jp/msdf/sf/english/news/10/1005-01.html ...

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Modificato 5 Ottobre 2021 da TT-1 Pinto
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[TT-1 Pinto]

Intrusione cinese da record nell'ADIZ di Taiwan ...

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Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND) reports that a record 56 Chinese military aircraft violated Taiwan's air defense identification zone (ADIZ) on Monday (Oct. 4), surpassing all-time records set over the weekend.
On its real-time military update website, the MND announced the largest-ever single-day incursion by People's Liberation Army Aircraft (PLAAF) on Monday. 
The aircraft included 34 Shenyang J-16 fighter jets, two SU-30 fighter jets, two Shaanxi Y-8 anti-submarine warfare (Y-8 ASW) planes, two KJ-500 airborne early warning and control aircraft (KJ-500 AEW&C), and 12 Xian H-6 bombers.
In a second report issued that evening, it announced four additional J-16 fighter jets had entered the ADIZ. 
With the addition of the four fighters, the total for Monday rose to 56 military aircraft.

... taiwannews.com.tw ... https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4305785 ...

E l'Australia lancia un avvertimento ... taiwannews.com.tw ... https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4306424 ...

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[TT-1 Pinto]

L'accordo "AUKUS" fa scuola ... e l'India ne seguirà, almeno in parte, l'esempio ...

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India’s navy will deploy a mix of both nuclear and conventional submarines to deal with maritime threats, a senior government official said Monday (Oct. 4).
The announcement comes after the AUKUS agreement between Australia, the U.K. and the U.S., which saw Australia opt for nuclear-powered subs over French-made conventional diesel-electric submarines, according to a report from ANI (*), a leading Indian news bureau.
"For Australia, the threat is more in the open oceans and the areas around that area. The decision to scrap a conventional submarine deal makes sense for them,” the senior government official told ANI.
“While for us, the need is to tackle threats both near our coastal areas as well as open seas. That is why the Indian Navy would build a fleet which would include both nuclear as well as conventional submarines.”

... taiwannews.com.tw ... https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4306249 ...

(*) ... aninews.in ... https://aninews.in/news/national/general-news/indian-navy-to-build-operate-a-mix-of-nuclear-conventional-submarine-fleet20211004180030/ ...

[TT-1 Pinto]

Taiwan, a causa dei recenti avvenimenti, aumenterà le spese per la difesa ...

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Taiwan plans to set aside an extra $9 billion as a special budget for additional defense spending over the next five years as it prioritizes long-range and anti-ship weapons in the face of ongoing pressure from China.
This sum will be on top of its regular annual defense budget, which was already set at $16.89 billion for fiscal 2022, which runs Jan. 1-Dec. 31, 2022.
Although Taiwan’s parliament must still approve the special budget, it’s likely to pass given the majority in the legislature held by the ruling Democratic Progressive Party of President Tsai Ing-wen.
Taiwan’s deputy defense minister, Wang Shin-lung, said the bulk of the funds would go to domestic weapons projects, although he noted that some of the money would go to parts and technological support from the U.S.

... defensenews.com ... https://www.defensenews.com/global/asia-pacific/2021/10/07/taiwan-is-spending-an-extra-9b-on-its-defense-heres-what-the-money-will-buy/ ...

[TT-1 Pinto]

Dopo l'accordo "AUKUS" per i sottomarini a propulsione nucleare ... l'Australia intende potenziare la componente elicotteristica antisom-antinave ...

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The US State Department has approved the potential sale of an additional 12 Lockheed Martin MH-60R Seahawk naval combat helicopters to the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).
The approval, announced by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) on 8 October (*), covers 12 helicopters, equipment, training and related services and is valued at US$985 million.
--- --- ---
The RAN currently operates 24 MH-60R Seahawks in the naval combat helicopter role, sufficient to provide eight flights (of a single helicopter) at sea and concurrently deliver shore based training and operational tasking. 
They are shore-based at HMAS Albatross, near Nowra and serve with 725 and 816 Squadrons.

... australiandefence.com.au ... https://www.australiandefence.com.au/news/australia-buys-12-more-mh-60r-helicopters ...

(*) ... dsca.mil ... https://www.dsca.mil/press-media/major-arms-sales/australia-mh-60r-multi-mission-helicopters-and-related-defense ...

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[TT-1 Pinto]

Misteriosa collisione nel Mar Cinese Meridionale ...

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Uno strano incidente per la flotta degli Stati Uniti nell’oceano Pacifico. 
Dopo la notizia riportata per primo da Usni News, la Flotta del Pacifico ha confermato che il pomeriggio del 2 ottobre, durante la navigazione in immersione, un sottomarino classe Seawolf, lo Uss Connecticut, “ha colpito un oggetto”. 
Fonti della Difesa Usa riferiscono che diversi marinai sono rimasti lievemente feriti, anche se nessuno è grave né tantomeno in pericolo di vita. 
Il sottomarino – spiega il Pentagono – “rimane in condizioni sicure e stabili” e l’incidente non avrebbe interessato la propulsione nucleare.

... it.insideover.com ... https://it.insideover.com/difesa/pacifico-collisione-sottomarino-americano-connecticut.html ...

Anche qui ... rid.it ... https://www.rid.it/shownews/4448 ...

[TT-1 Pinto]

Un commento recante una previsione pessimistica ...

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Si chiama Taiwan, ma da ieri è la Danzica del Pacifico. 
E al pari della città polacca rischia di trasformarsi nel focolaio di un conflitto incontrollabile tra Cina e Stati Uniti. 
Un conflitto che, come nel 1939 quando Parigi e Londra rinunciarono a fermare l'invasione tedesca della Polonia, rischia di venir innescato dalla riluttanza e dalla debolezza dell'America di Joe Biden. 
I fatti sembrano dimostrarlo. 
Ad agosto, due giorni dopo una conquista talebana di Kabul favorita dal rinunciatario ritiro americano Pechino lanciò le prime esercitazioni militari esplicitamente rivolte a verificare la fattibilità dell'invasione.
Manovre seguite ieri dalle dichiarazioni con cui il presidente Xi Jinping ha affermato di puntare all'annessione. 
Certo ci ha aggiunto l'aggettivo «pacifica», ma ha anche promesso una «brutta fine» a chi cercherà di fermarla. 
Nelle mosse e nelle aspirazioni di un presidente che ha fatto inserire il proprio pensiero nella Costituzione ed esige un rispetto ed una venerazione equivalenti a quelle riservate a Mao non vi è nulla di pacifico. 
La sorte degli oppositori di Hong Kong e del Tibet, la morte in detenzione del Nobel per la pace Liu Xia Bo e l'internamento di milioni di Uiguri, la minoranza musulmana dello Xinjiang, sono lì a dimostrarlo.

... ilgiornale.it ... https://www.ilgiornale.it/news/politica/danzica-sorte-segnata-1980928.html ...

[TT-1 Pinto]

In gran segreto ...

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Amid unprecedented large-scale intrusions into Taiwan's air defense identification zone (ADIZ) by Chinese warplanes earlier this week, reports surfaced on Thursday (Oct. 7) that U.S. special operations forces and U.S. Marines have been providing training in Taiwan for at least year.
On Thursday, the Wall Street Journal cited U.S. government officials as saying that over two dozen U.S. special operations soldiers and support troops are stationed in Taiwan to provide military training for ground forces. 
In addition, U.S. Marines are working with Taiwan's naval forces in "small-boat training." 
The officials stated that the American forces have been in Taiwan for over a year.
That same day, Politico released a report (*) in which it cited a defense official as confirming that U.S. troops have been "advising" Taiwanese forces and are "increasing their efforts" in the country.

... taiwannews.com.tw ... https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4309326 ...

(*) ... politico.com ... https://www.politico.com/news/2021/10/07/lawmakers-us-troops-taiwan-deployment-515604 ...

[TT-1 Pinto]

Per quanto riguarda Taiwan ... è necessario uscire dalla politica di "ambiguità strategica" ...

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Amid a surge in Chinese aggression toward Taiwan in September and October, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle called for the U.S. to break from its longstanding policy of “strategic ambiguity” when it comes to the defense of the island.
Speaking during a virtual forum hosted by Politico on Oct. 7, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) and Rep. Ami Bera (D-Calif.) agreed that the policy - whereby the U.S. refuses to officially say whether it would intervene militarily if China invades Taiwan - needs to change, saying doing so would act as a deterrent to the Chinese.
“I think that removing the ambiguity would be good and would probably have a calming effect on China’s aspirations,” said Tillis, who serves on the Senate Armed Services Committee.  
“I think it’s also important for the American people to understand how devastating China’s invasion of Taiwan would be, economically in terms of safety and security in that region. I do believe that we need to make it clear to China that there’s a consequence.”
“I certainly would move away from strategic ambiguity,” Bera agreed. 
“I use the term ‘strategic deterrence,’ but deterrence only if there’s clarity in that deterrence. And often, we just talk about the military and deterrence. There’s economic, as well. What kind of multilateral sanctions would be placed on China should they invade Taiwan? What else would happen in the region?”

... airforcemag.com ... https://www.airforcemag.com/china-taiwan-tension-lawmakers-end-to-strategic-ambiguity/ ...

[TT-1 Pinto]

Misteriosa collisione nel Mar Cinese Meridionale ... è iniziata a Guam la valutazione a bordo del sottomarino incidentato ...

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The U.S. nuclear attack boat that hit an underwater object in the South China Sea on Oct. 2 is now in Guam undergoing an assessment and preliminary repairs in the midst of two investigations into the incident, Navy officials confirmed to USNI News on Sunday.
USS Connecticut (SSN-22) arrived at Naval Base Guam on Friday after almost a week sailing on the surface of the Pacific from the South China Sea.
A Naval Sea Systems Command damage assessment team met the Sea Wolf-class attack boat at the pier in Guam, Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet spokeswoman Cmdr. Cindy Fields told USNI News.
The NAVSEA team is “responsible for coordination of the damage assessment and development of repair recommendations, which is forwarded to Submarine Force U.S. Pacific Fleet and NAVSEA for approval,” she said.

... news.usni.org ... https://news.usni.org/2021/10/10/assessment-of-damaged-attack-boat-uss-connecticut-begins-in-guam ...

[TT-1 Pinto]

Cinque paesi prendono parte all'esercitazione "Bersama Gold 2021" ...

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Nations part of the Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA) – Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and the United Kingdom – began the field training portion of the Bersama Gold 2021 exercise today on Friday.
The FPDA is an arrangement in which all five member nations agree to consult one another on measures taken separately or together in response to any attack or threat of attack to Malaysia or Singapore. 
Under the FPDA a number of formalised and scheduled exercises have been held since the formation of the agreement in 1971.
The ongoing Bersama Gold 2021 exercise is actually the biennial Bersama Shield exercise, which was renamed to Gold to reflect the 50th anniversary of the FPDA. 
The exercise marked the first field exercise for the FPDA since 2019, with the COVID-19 pandemic reducing drills to command post exercises held virtually.
The Bersama Gold 2021 exercise will involve sea and air exercises, mostly in the South China Sea international waters between the coasts of Malaysia and Singapore, where participating nations will conduct serials like anti-air and anti-submarine exercises, gunnery firings and maneuvering drills. 
Air forces from the FPDA member-nations will perform air defense exercises over the airspace of West Malaysia and support the maritime component in anti-submarine exercises. 
Forces will also conduct a virtual jungle warfare workshop, which involves cross-sharing jungle fighting doctrines and discussions on interoperability between FPDA member-nations’ land forces.

... news.usni.org ... https://news.usni.org/2021/10/08/malaysian-and-singapore-drill-with-allis-u-k-australia-and-new-zealand-in-bersama-gold-2021 ...

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[TT-1 Pinto]

Misteriosa collisione nel Mar Cinese Meridionale ... il Pentagono rigetta le accuse della Cina ...

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Pentagon spokesman John Kirby on Tuesday denied a Chinese accusation that the U.S. is seeking to cover up a submarine collision in the South China Sea.
“It’s an odd way of covering something up when you put out a press release about it,” Kirby said during a press conference when asked about China’s allegation.
Seawolf-class nuclear attack submarine USS Connecticut (SSN-22) hit an unknown object while underwater on Oct. 2, injuring 11 sailors, USNI News previously reported.
The Navy has not yet said what Connecticut struck, and Kirby referred reporters to the Navy when asked. 
USNI News previously reported that it was not another vessel.
It took the Navy five days to release information on the crash, which prompted Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian to question the details about the collision, according to a transcript of the foreign ministry’s Monday press conference (*).

... news.usni.org ... https://news.usni.org/2021/10/12/pentagon-denies-chinese-accusation-of-cover-up-in-nuclear-attack-submarine-crash ...

(*) ... bs.china-embassy.org ... http://bs.china-embassy.org/eng/zyxw/t1913649.htm ...

 

[TT-1 Pinto]

Ci manca molto poco ...
Secondo un rapporto della Rand Corporation Cina e Russia insieme sarebbero sul punto di raggiungere e superare la potenza militare degli Stati Uniti ...

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The Sino-Russian relationship will continue to strengthen due to the continuation of U.S. policies towards those two nations, and that “aggregate Chinese and Russian power” will “continue to approach, but not exceed” U.S power through 2022, according to a new Rand Corp. report.
The report’s authors describe the growing relationship between Beijing and Moscow as one of pragmatism and based on “balancing” against “U.S. hard and soft power.” 
Additionally, China and Russia share a desire to counter a perceived U.S. ideology “of militarism, interventionism and the forcible imposition of U.S. values on other countries.”

... armytimes.com ... https://www.armytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2021/10/13/combined-russian-and-chinese-military-power-will-approach-but-not-exceed-us-report/ ...

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[TT-1 Pinto]

Il Capo delle Operazioni Navali statunitense mette in evidenza l'importanza degli alleati, quali l'India, per contrastare l'espansionismo cinese nel settore Indo-Pacifico ...

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While the United States is currently investing in key military capabilities to ensure its interests are protected, it’s also leveraging the asymmetric advantage of having partners and allies globally, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday said Tuesday.
Gilday was responding to a question during a media call in India as to how the United States planned to address and overcome the increasing military capabilities of China that are eroding the United States’ dominance in the military sphere.
“The key piece here is allies and partners. We are not going to outspend China, so where do we focus on key capabilities that we think [of] as most important as a nation. I don’t want to get into specifics on where those investments are, but it’s focused investments that we have to be concerned about … ourselves to make sure that our own national interests are sufficiently protected,” Gilday told reporters. 
“But secondly, the asymmetric advantage – and I want to underscore asymmetric advantage that the United States has with its partners and allies – not only in the region, but globally and India is a supreme example of that.”

... news.usni.org ... https://news.usni.org/2021/10/13/cno-gilday-u-s-must-leverage-allies-like-india-to-counter-china-in-indo-pacific ...

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[engine]

Non sapevo che l'India fosse " alleata " degli USA .  Forse A-US-UK-IND  ? 

[TT-1 Pinto]

1 ora fa, engine ha scritto:

Non sapevo che l'India fosse " alleata " degli USA .  Forse A-US-UK-IND  ? 

In fatto di armamenti, l'India è sempre stata una cliente tradizionale di Unione Sovietica e, successivamente, Federazione Russa, ma, in tempi recenti, ha anche acquistato dagli Stati Uniti parecchio materiale militare (aerei da trasporto medi e pesanti, velivoli ed elicotteri da pattugliamento marittimo ed elicotteri da combattimento e trasporto pesante) ...

Al momento attuale la situazione sembra essere questa ...

... politico.com ... https://www.politico.com/news/2021/09/30/india-arms-deal-russia-biden-514822 ...

Al tempo stesso il CNO Gilday ribadisce l'importanza delle esercitazioni aeronavali interalleate nel settore Indo-Pacifico ...

... news.usni.org ... https://news.usni.org/2021/10/15/cno-gilday-u-s-allies-conduct-indo-pacific-exercises-to-strengthen-interoperability-between-navies ...

 

 

[engine]

Certo , ma da qui a pensare agli automatismi d'azione di un' alleanza militare ne passa.

L'India ha sempre diversificato le sue fonti di approvvigionamento . 

Il contenimento della Cina è un aspetto di quest'epoca , ma se gli USA pensano a una India a rimorchio ( come inglesi e australiani )  , si sbagliano .

[TT-1 Pinto]

33 minuti fa, engine ha scritto:

Certo, ma da qui a pensare agli automatismi d'azione di un'alleanza militare ne passa.

L'India ha sempre diversificato le sue fonti di approvvigionamento . 

Il contenimento della Cina è un aspetto di quest'epoca, ma se gli USA pensano a una India a rimorchio ( come inglesi e australiani ), si sbagliano.

Sarà ...

Ma devi tenere presente che l'India ha dei considerevoli contenziosi con la Cina e con il Pakistan (alleato della Cina e dotato di armamento nucleare) e che, in più di un'occasione, sono arrivati a menare le mani.

E considera anche che il recente riavvicinamento della Russia alla Cina non le farà di certo piacere ...

E', quindi, una situazione assai complessa ...

[TT-1 Pinto]

"2034" ... torna in auge la fantapolitica o si tratta di una fosca ed accurata previsione?

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Una giornata come un'altra nel Mar Cinese meridionale. 
Tre cacciatorpedinieri classe Arleigh Burke procedono con rotta sud-sudovest a diciotto nodi. 
Nella zona la tensione militare tra la Cina e gli alleati degli Usa, come le Filippine, è sempre alta: le tre navi sono lì per garantire il rispetto di quelle che vengono considerate acque internazionali da tutti ... 
Tranne la Repubblica Popolare Cinese. 
Ad un certo punto le navi americane vedono quello che sembra un peschereccio in fiamme e in difficoltà. 
Si avvicinano. 
Il peschereccio non sembra intenzionato a chiedere aiuto, anzi, l'equipaggio, chiaramente cinese, si affanna per tener lontani gli americani ... 
Quasi contemporaneamente un aereo F35 dell'Usaf vola sul confine iraniano per testare i suoi nuovissimi sistemi di guerra elettronica. 
Poche ore dopo le navi americane saranno ridotte a rottami fumanti e il preziosissimo F35 sarà catturato dagli iraniani dopo che - come per magia - qualcuno è riuscito ad hackerare completamente il suo sistema di guida pilotandolo al suolo come fosse un aeroplanino telecomandato per bambini...
Comincia più o meno così il romanzo "2034", scritto a quattro mani da Elliot Ackerman (bestsellerista con un passato nelle forze speciali e di consulente della Casa Bianca) e l'ammiraglio James Stavridis (già a capo dell'Us European Command). 
Il 2034 del titolo è l'anno in cui i due analisti immaginano che, proprio a partire dal Mar della Cina, si scateni una terza guerra mondiale, sebbene atipica e combattuta «su piccola scala».

... ilgiornale.it ... https://www.ilgiornale.it/news/scritto-ammiraglio-e-consulente-casa-bianca-libro-ci-1982598.html ...

[TT-1 Pinto]

La carenza di energia elettrica ... qui sta il busillis ... 

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The Pentagon finds itself in the “shocking and eye-opening” position of needing more electrical power to protect distributed naval and ground forces from long-range attack at a time when China dominates the global production of advanced batteries needed to meet that mission, a panel of security experts said Thursday.
Heather Penny, a senior fellow at the Air Force Association’s Mitchell Institute, said that as a pilot, “electricity was just as important as jet fuel” in laying out and reviewing missions. 
Yet, she pointed out that China’s dominance of the production end is matched by its control of mining ventures extracting cobalt, lithium and manganese critical to manufacturing advanced batteries with long lives for electrical power in combat.
Speaking at the Hudson Institute online forum, Bryan Clark, director of Hudson’s Center for Defense Concepts and Technology, said “that distribution [to spread out forces] has a lot of costs” to keep them operating when under and after an attack. 
The advantage comes in complicating an adversary’s attack plans.

... news.usni.org ... https://news.usni.org/2021/10/15/panel-military-needs-more-electrical-power-to-counter-long-range-missile-threats ...

[TT-1 Pinto]

Da un noto, autorevole quotidiano statunitense ...

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China tests new space capability with hypersonic missile ...

Demetri Sevastopulo in Washington and Kathrin Hille in Taipei  (October 16, 2021)

Launch in August of nuclear-capable rocket that circled the globe took US intelligence by surprise ...

China tested a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile in August that circled the globe before speeding towards its target, demonstrating an advanced space capability that caught US intelligence by surprise.
Five people familiar with the test said the Chinese military launched a rocket that carried a hypersonic glide vehicle which flew through low-orbit space before cruising down towards its target.
The missile missed its target by about two-dozen miles, according to three people briefed on the intelligence. 
But two said the test showed that China had made astounding progress on hypersonic weapons and was far more advanced than US officials realised.
The test has raised new questions about why the US often underestimated China’s military modernisation.
“We have no idea how they did this,” said a fourth person.
The US, Russia and China are all developing hypersonic weapons, including glide vehicles that are launched into space on a rocket but orbit the earth under their own momentum. 
They fly at five times the speed of sound, slower than a ballistic missile. 
But they do not follow the fixed parabolic trajectory of a ballistic missile and are manoeuvrable, making them harder to track.
Taylor Fravel, an expert on Chinese nuclear weapons policy who was unaware of the test, said a hypersonic glide vehicle armed with a nuclear warhead could help China “negate” US missile defence systems which are designed to destroy incoming ballistic missiles.
“Hypersonic glide vehicles ... fly at lower trajectories and can manoeuvre in flight, which makes them hard to track and destroy,” said Fravel, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Fravel added that it would be “destabilising” if China fully developed and deployed such a weapon, but he cautioned that a test did not necessarily mean that Beijing would deploy the capability.
Mounting concern about China’s nuclear capabilities comes as Beijing continues to build up its conventional military forces and engages in increasingly assertive military activity near Taiwan.
Tensions between the US and China have risen as the Biden administration has taken a tough tack on Beijing, which has accused Washington of being overly hostile.
Michael Gallagher, a Republican member of the House armed services committee, said the test should “serve as a call to action”.
“The People’s Liberation Army now has an increasingly credible capability to undermine our missile defences and threaten the American homeland with both conventional and nuclear strikes,” said Gallagher. 
“Even more disturbing is the fact that American technology has contributed to the PLA’s hypersonic missile programme.”
US military officials in recent months have warned about China’s growing nuclear capabilities, particularly after the release of satellite imagery that showed it was building more than 200 intercontinental missile silos. 
China is not bound by any arms-control deals and has been unwilling to engage the US in talks about its nuclear arsenal and policy.
Last month, Frank Kendall, US air force secretary, hinted that Beijing was developing a new weapon. 
He said China had made huge advances, including the “potential for global strikes ... from space”. 
He declined to provide details, but suggested that Beijing was developing something akin to the “Fractional Orbital Bombardment System” that the USSR deployed for part of the Cold War, before abandoning it.
“If you use that kind of an approach, you don’t have to use a traditional ICBM trajectory. It’s a way to avoid defences and missile warning systems,” said Kendall.
In August, General Glen VanHerck, head of North American Aerospace Defense Command, told a conference that China had “recently demonstrated very advanced hypersonic glide vehicle capabilities”. 
He warned that the Chinese capability would “provide significant challenges to my Norad capability to provide threat warning and attack assessment”.
Two of the people familiar with the Chinese test said the weapon could, in theory, fly over the South Pole. 
That would pose a big challenge for the US military because its missiles defence systems are focused on the northern polar route.
Hu Xijin, editor of Global Times, an ultranationalist Chinese state-run media outlet, tweeted that Beijing would improve its nuclear deterrence to “ensure that the US abandons the idea of nuclear blackmail against China”.
The revelation comes as the Biden administration undertakes the Nuclear Posture Review, an analysis of policy and capabilities mandated by Congress that has pitted arms-control advocates against those who believe the US must do more to modernise its nuclear arsenal because of China.
The Pentagon did not comment on the report but expressed concern about China. 
“We have made clear our concerns about the military capabilities China continues to pursue, capabilities that only increase tensions in the region and beyond,” said John Kirby, spokesperson. 
“That is one reason why we hold China as our number-one pacing challenge.”
The Chinese embassy declined to comment on the test, but Liu Pengyu, spokesperson, said China always pursued a military policy that was “defensive in nature” and its military development did not target any country.
“We don’t have a global strategy and plans of military operations like the US does. And we are not at all interested in having an arms race with other countries,” Liu said. 
“In contrast, the US has in recent years been fabricating excuses like ‘the China threat’ to justify its arms expansion and development of hypersonic weapons. This has directly intensified arms race in this category and severely undermined global strategic stability.”
One Asian national security official said the Chinese military conducted the test in August. 
China generally announces the launch of Long March rockets - the type used to launch the hypersonic glide vehicle into orbit - but it conspicuously concealed the August launch.
The security official, and another Chinese security expert close to the People’s Liberation Army, said the weapon was being developed by the China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics. 
CAAA is a research institute under China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, the main state-owned firm that makes missile systems and rockets for the country’s space programme. 
Both sources said the hypersonic glide vehicle was launched on a Long March rocket, which is used for the space programme.
The China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, which oversees launches, on July 19 said on an official social media account that it had launched a Long March 2C rocket, which it added was the 77th launch of that rocket. 
On August 24, it announced that it had conducted a 79th flight. 
But there was no announcement of a 78th launch, which sparked speculation among observers of its space programme about a secret launch. 
CAAA did not respond to requests for comment.

 

 

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Intanto ... Taiwan chiede agli Stati Uniti che venga accelerata la consegna degli F-16 ordinati nel 2019 ...

Quote

Taiwan is asking the U.S. to expedite the delivery of several squadrons of F-16s it ordered in 2019 amid unprecedented incursions by Chinese warplanes in recent weeks.
In 2019, Taiwan placed an US$8 billion order for 66 F-16Vs, which were expected to be delivered in batches over the next 10 years. 
However, aggressive military actions by China have intensified over the past two years, with an unprecedented incursion of 149 Chinese warplanes taking place in Taiwan's air defense identification zone (ADIZ) between Oct. 1-4.
On Saturday (Oct. 16), CNN reported that even prior to the early October incursion of 149 Chinese military aircraft, Taiwanese officials had requested the U.S. speed up its delivery of the new fighter jets (*). 
According to the report, "the Biden administration had discussed with Taiwanese officials the possibility of expediting the delivery of American-made F-16s to Taiwan."

... taiwannews.com.tw ... https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4318125 ...

(*) ... cnn.com ... https://edition.cnn.com/2021/10/15/politics/china-taiwan-tension-debate-biden-response/index.html ...

[TT-1 Pinto]

Una nuova dimostrazione di forza?

Quote

Chinese and Russian naval vessels on Monday passed together through the Tsugaru Strait, located between Japan's main island of Honshu and Hokkaido to the north, for unknown reasons, the Defense Ministry said.
It is the first time the Japanese ministry has confirmed Chinese and Russian warships going through the strait, with its narrowest point only 18.7 kilometers.
A total of 10 vessels belonging to their navies sailed from the Sea of Japan to the Pacific Ocean ...

... mainichi.jp ... https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20211019/p2g/00m/0na/041000c

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