Two Chinese Jin Class (Type 094) nuclear powered ballistic missile submarines. Photo Credit: FAS / Google EarthMay 21, 2008 - A detailed analysis of unclassified satellite photos has revealed the presence of more than 50 launch pads for nuclear ballistic missiles, targeted at India and Russia, scattered across a 2,000 square kilometer (772 square miles) area of central China near Delingha and Da Qaidam.
The presence of the missiles in the region was widely known earlier, but the large number of missiles deployed, the extent of the deployment area and the massive support infrastructure has come as a chilling surprise, at least to non government analysts.
A detailed analysis of the deployment, supported by satellite imagery can be viewed here.
Hopefully, the extent of Chinese targeting of India was known to our government. However, since the information is now in the public domain, the government needs to assuage public concerns about the state of our deterrence.
Analysis of satellite imagery had earlier revealed the existence of extensive Chinese infrastructure on Hainan Island, south of Hong Kong, to shelter nuclear submarines and future aircraft careers.
The infrastructure at the Sanya naval base in Hainan includes under the mountain berthing for ships, nuclear submarines and future aircraft careers. The underground berthing is supported by 11 recently detected tunnel openings that revealed the existence of the berthing facility.
Since the base is close to deep waters, the implication of the underground berthing is sobering - Chinese nuclear submarines will be soon be able to deploy to deep waters undetected, making the task of hunting them down very difficult even for the US.
So far Chinese nuclear submarines have never ventured far from home. In the days ahead, that is likely to change. When they do begin to venture far it is likely they will first head for the Indian Ocean.
A Jin-class Type-094 ballistic missile submarine has been seen berthed at the Sanya. The sub is equipped with 12 missile silos for Julang-2 missiles with a reported maximum range of almost 5,000 miles.
The Chinese underwater threat is potent, and their general military buildup unprecedented, considering that no one is threatening them.
In an article titled An Underwater Threat Dan Blumenthal of American Enterprise Institute writes:
"Since 1995, China has commissioned more than 30 new submarines. It has acquired or is building at least five different classes of subs--a number unmatched by any other military. In addition to this ever-growing underwater force, Beijing has launched an impressive array of advanced destroyers, fielded more than 1,000 ballistic missiles since the early 1990s at a rate of 150 a year, and acquired hundreds of the most modern fighter aircraft. Many experts on the Chinese military tend to explain away this rapid buildup as necessary to deterring Taiwan's independence. But China faces no serious challenge from Taiwan, and Taiwan's military has done comparatively little to augment its firepower over the past decade. The fact is that for some time now, China has had more than enough military capacity to deter Taiwan from formally breaking with the mainland. Indeed, if anything, the worry today is that China can coerce Taiwan into a settling their dispute on Beijing's terms. It also hasn't escaped notice from others in the neighborhood that all these new military capabilities targeting Taiwan could also be used for alternative purposes."
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