The race for strategic missiles underway in the Far East: Warming up of war

A new Reuters report detailing the growth in regional missile stocks says China is "mass-producing its DF-26, a multi-purpose weapon with a range of up to 4,000 kilometers, while the United States is developing new weapons aimed at counter Beijing in the Pacific. "

This has led other countries, once on the sidelines, to "buy or develop their own new missiles, driven by security concerns about China and a desire to reduce their dependence on the United States" – the report stresses.

By the end of the decade, Asia will be rife with conventional missiles that fly farther and faster, hit harder and are more sophisticated than ever – a stark and dangerous change from recent years, analysts, diplomats and military officials say. Adds the report.

The underlying Reuters map and infographic visualizes the emerging "Asia-Pacific missile race".

Let's see what are the technological and military evolutions in the area:

• The United States Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) plans to deploy its new long-range weapons in "high-survival precision attack networks along the First Island Chain," which includes Japan, Taiwan and other Pacific islands that surround the eastern coasts of China and Russia.
• Japan, which is home to more than 54,000 US troops, could host some of the new missile batteries on its Okinawa islands, but the US should probably withdraw other forces … Japan has spent millions on long-range air-launched weapons, and is developing a new version of a truck-mounted anti-ship missile, the Type 12, with an expected range of 1,000 kilometers.
• Australia recently announced that it will spend $ 100 billion over 20 years to develop advanced missiles.
• South Korea has the strongest national ballistic missile program in place, which has received a boost from a recent deal with Washington to remove bilateral limits to its capabilities. Its Hyunmoo-4 has a range of 800 kilometers, which allows it to reach mainland China within it as well.
• North Korea recently tested what appeared to be an improved version of its proven KN-23 missile with a 2.5-ton warhead which, analysts say, aims to outrun the Hyunmoo-4's 2-ton warhead.
• Taiwan has not publicly announced a ballistic missile program, but in December the US State Department approved its request to purchase dozens of American short-range ballistic missiles. Officials say Taipei is mass-producing weapons and developing cruise missiles like the Yun Feng, which could strike as far as Beijing.

More countries are arming themselves in an impressive way, with a concentration of strategic bombs in such a small area, in the hands of such opposing political powers, it can only lead to major problems.

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The article The race for strategic missiles underway in the Far East: War warming comes from ScenariEconomici.it .

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This is a machine translation of a post published on Scenari Economici at the URL https://scenarieconomici.it/la-corsa-ai-missili-strategici-in-corso-in-estremo-oriente-riscaldamento-bellico/ on Sun, 25 Jul 2021 11:52:46 +0000.