Washington: The Pentagon’s top general said on Wednesday that China’s recent test of an earth-circling hypersonic missile was akin to the Soviet Union’s stunning launch of the world’s first satellite, Sputnik, in 1957, which sparked the superpowers’ space race.
Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, confirmed for the first time the Chinese test of a nuclear-capable missile that would be very difficult to defend against. "What we saw was a very significant event of a test of a hypersonic weapon system. And it is very concerning," Milley told Bloomberg TV.
"I don’t know if it’s quite a Sputnik moment, but I think it’s very close to that," he said. "It’s a very significant technological event that occurred ... and it has all of our attention." The Pentagon had previously declined to confirm the test, first reported by the Financial Times on October 16.
The newspaper said the August test launch caught the United States by surprise. The missile circled the Earth at a low altitude and a velocity of more than five times the speed of sound, although it missed its target by more than 30 kilometers (19 miles), according to the Financial Times.
China denied the report, saying it was a routine test of a reusable space vehicle. Hypersonics are the new frontier in missile technology, because they fly lower and so are harder to detect than ballistic missiles, can reach targets more quickly, and are maneuverable. That makes them more dangerous, particularly if mounted with nuclear warheads.
The United States, Russia, China and North Korea have all tested hypersonics and at several others are developing the technology. China unveiled a hypersonic medium-range missile, the DF-17, in 2019, which can travel around 2,000 kilometres and can carry nuclear warheads. The missile mentioned in the FT story is a different one, with a longer range. It can be launched into orbit before coming back into the atmosphere to hit its target.
MEXICO CITY: Dengue cases in the Americas spiked in the first three months of this year by three times the number of...
MOSCOW: Russia has no designs on any Nato country and will not attack Poland, the Baltic states or the Czech Republic...
NEW DELHI: An Indian court extended the custody of opposition leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal until...
GENEVA: Gang violence in Haiti has killed over 1,500 people so far this year, including many children, while dozens...
ISTANBUL: Bruised and fractured by Tayyip Erdogan’s victory in 2023 general elections, Turkiye’s opposition aims...
THE HAGUE/CAIRO: The World Court on Thursday unanimously ordered Israel, accused by South Africa of genocide in Gaza,...
KYIV: President Volodymyr Zelensky told the speaker of the US House of Representatives during a phone call on Thursday...
ATHENS: The government of Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis faces a no-confidence vote on Thursday over the...