The new ICBM position area of China in Gansu province. Photo: Planet/Center for Nonproliferation Studies pic.twitter.com/QxCkPesdmC
— Ivan O'Gilvi (@o_gilvi) July 1, 2021
An American expert in the field of strategic weapons noticed signs of the construction of a grandiose positioning area for intercontinental ballistic missile launchers on satellite images of the desert in northern China.
A whole rocket city is being built in the desert of Gansu province, its area is hundreds of square kilometers. The researchers counted 119 launch positions for ICBMs - presumably DF-41 - and a command post. The construction sites are located at a distance of several kilometers from each other. Many are hidden under large domes - a common practice in the construction of military facilities in the PRC.
- The main earthworks began in January 2021. If we add launch shafts under construction in other regions of China to this positional area, their total number will increase to 145, " the Washington Post quotes Jeffrey Lewis, a specialist on China's nuclear arsenal. He described the scale of military construction in China as"incredible".
However, ballistic missiles may not be located in all mines, some of them will probably be used as false targets, the expert said. During the Cold War, the United States used similar tactics, constantly moving its ICBM according to a complex algorithm.
"China is expanding its nuclear forces as a deterrent that can survive the first US strike and deliver its own-in an amount sufficient to overcome the American missile defense," Lewis believes.
Anton Valagin
