The images captured by the
colorado-based maxer technologies dated
from sunday show the outlines of a u.s
aircraft carrier and at least one
destroyer on a railway track. Maxer identified the location as Rohachion, Ataklamakan desert county in
the northwestern Xinjiang region.
The independent U.S Naval Institute 9USNI) said the mock-ups of u.s ships were part
of a new target range developed by the People's Liberation Army (PLA). It was not
clear from the images how many details
had been included in the apparent
targets, although the usni identified
features on the destroyer including its
funnels and weapon systems.
The chinese foreign ministry
spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a daily
briefing on monday that he had no
information about the images. I'm not aware of the situation you
mentioned he added.
China's military upgrade has emphasized
countering the us and other naval forces. that includes the development of land
dash, sea and air launched missiles to
repel and possibly sink opposing vessels. Expressed most emphatically by the
land-based DF-21D ballistic missile
known as the carrier killer. There has been a substantial increase in
chinese military flights southwest of
taiwan. The self-governing island
republic claimed by beijing in which it
threatens to annex by force.
Washington provides taiwan with much of
its weaponry and u.s law requires that
it ensures the island can defend itself
and treats threats to it as matters of
grave concern. The images released by max
are come amid growing concerns over the
possibility of military conflict between
the world's two biggest economies which
are at odds over a litany of political
and economic issues.
The pentagon issued a report this month
saying china is expanding its nuclear
force much faster than u.s officials
predicted a year ago. That appears designed to enable beijing
to match or surpass u.s global power by
mid-century. The report says u.s defense officials are increasingly
wary of china's intentions largely with
regard to the status of taiwan.
The PLA's evolving capabilities and
concepts continue to strengthen china's
ability to fight and win wars against a
strong enemy, a likely euphemism for the
united states. The report says China's navy and coast guard are also
adding vessels at a record pace
concentrating them in the south china
sea, the strategic waterway that china
claims virtually in its entirety. While the us navy remains predominant
its resources are divided between the
indo-pacific, the persian gulf, the
mediterranean and other regions where u
s interests lie.
China's test of a hypersonic weapon
capable of partially orbiting earth
before re-entering the atmosphere and
gliding on a maneuverable path to its
target also surprised top us military
leaders. Beijing said it was testing a reusable
space vehicle, not a missile but the
weapon systems design was meant to evade
us missile defenses.
Gen Mark Milley the chair of the joint
chiefs of staff said the test was very
close to being a sputnik moment, akin to
the 1957 launching by the soviet union
of the world's first space satellite
which fed fears the u.s had fallen
behind technologically.
