More details of China’s suspected hypersonic missile test launches in the summer of 2021 have been revealed, according to a Chinese language media report relaying a new report from the Financial Times on Oct. 21.
According to the report, the Chinese military conducted two hypersonic weapon tests in the summer of 2021, raising U.S. concerns that Beijing is making progress in the race to develop a new generation of weapons.
On July 27, the Chinese military launched a rocket that used a “fractional orbital bombardment” system to propel a “hypersonic glide vehicle” capable of carrying a nuclear warhead around the Earth for the first time, according to four people familiar with U.S. intelligence assessments.
For the second time, as previously reported by the Financial Times on Oct. 17, China conducted a second hypersonic test on Aug. 13.
Three people familiar with China’s first hypersonic weapon test in July said it alarmed the Pentagon and U.S. intelligence services because China successfully demonstrated a completely new weapon capability.
One person familiar with the matter said U.S. government scientists are struggling to understand the capability, which the United States does not currently possess. He added that China’s achievement appears to “defy the laws of physics.”
The White House declined to comment on Oct. 20. U.S. government officials, including Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, have declined to confirm or deny that China conducted the latest hypersonic weapon test.
President Joe Biden expressed concern about China’s hypersonic weapons on Oct. 20.
Asked by a reporter if he was concerned about China’s hypersonic missiles as he boarded an Air Force One jet to Pennsylvania, Biden replied, “Yes.”
White House spokesman Jen Psaki told the media aboard Air Force One on 20 May that the U.S. would not comment on specific reports, but that the White House had raised concerns about China’s hypersonic missile technology through “diplomatic channels.”
“In general, we’ve made our concerns clear, and I think President (Joe) Biden’s comments reflect that concern about the continued pursuit of military capabilities by the People’s Republic of China,” Psaki said. “So that remains our view. Obviously, we’ve raised the issue through diplomatic channels.”
Sen. Angus King (D-Maine) argued on 18 that “the impact of these weapons being developed by China or Russia could be catastrophic.”
He said, “Hypersonic weapons are strategic game-changers with the dangerous potential to fundamentally destabilize strategy as we know it. The United States cannot afford to fall behind in this development or allow blind spots as we monitor the progress of our competitors.”
China has denied reports of a test launch of a hypersonic missile, and on Oct. 18, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian responded to the report at a regular press conference, saying the test was a routine spacecraft test.
