Washington/Beijing – Senior US Senator Lindsey Graham warned that report of China conducting a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile test is not good news, and if the news is true, it could spark a nuclear race between the United States and China. Graham wrote a letter to the US Congress demanding an immediate meeting with the Department of Defence and intelligence agencies. As per a British Daily report, China has tested two nuclear-capable hypersonic missiles in two successive months.
It is not good news that China has tested nuclear-capable hypersonic missiles, and if the news is true, it could trigger a nuclear competition between the United States and China. The United States may try to prevent China from triggering a new nuclear race, but it is unlikely to succeed. Graham warned that the United States would have to invest heavily to build capabilities to neutralize China’s hypersonic nuclear missiles. The Republican senator also demanded a classified meeting with senior officials from the US Department of Defence and Intelligence agencies.
Last week, the Financial Times of the United Kingdom reported about the hypersonic missile test conducted by China in August. However, the latest report of the Financial Times indicates that China has conducted two nuclear-capable hypersonic missiles test, first in July and the second one in August. The first test was conducted on July 27th with the use of a hypersonic glide vehicle.
The second test was conducted on August 13th. The Chinese missile travelled in a low orbit during both tests. US agencies were clueless about the tests. At the same time, the newspaper claimed that the capabilities demonstrated by the Chinese missiles had astonished the US intelligence agencies. According to US researchers, the Chinese test is more advanced than the hypersonic missile technology presently with the United States, which has become a cause of concern. The State Department informed that US President Joe Biden expressed concern about the test.
But China has denied claims that it tested the hypersonic missile. Chinese foreign ministry said that it had tested the space plane on July 16th. China said it had not conducted any other tests. Therefore, the mystery surrounding these tests is deepening.
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