Latest news with #NGP
Business Upturn
a day ago
- Business
- Business Upturn
Perseus Mining Delivers Encouraging Drilling Results at Nyanzaga Gold Project
Perth, July 22, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — PERSEUS MINING DELIVERS ENCOURAGING DRILLING RESULTS FROM ITS CURRENT DRILL PROGRAM AT THE NYANZAGA GOLD PROJECT Perth, Western Australia/July 22, 2025/Perseus Mining Limited (ASX/TSX: PRU) is pleased to provide an update on ongoing resource definition drilling currently being conducted at its Nyanzaga Gold Project (NGP) in Tanzania and to announce some of the more significant drill results achieved since our last exploration announcement, dated December 5, 2024 (see release 'Confidence Boosting Infill Drilling at Nyanzaga Project). Below is a summary of the release. The full release with all drill hole data and results is available at and The current drilling program has been designed to further inform and advance Perseus's proposed open pit mining scenario at NGP as detailed in the Feasibility Study update, released to the market on April 25, 2025 (see release 'Perseus Mining proceeds with development of the Nyanzaga Gold Project'). Drill holes have been designed to infill existing drilling, collect additional information including metallurgical and geotechnical data and most importantly evaluate potential strike and depth extensions to the mineralisation. As of the end of June 2025, a total of 35,623 m of combined reverse circulation (RC) and diamond (DD) meters have been drilled into the Tusker and Kilimani deposits since the last update in December 2024 (refer Since acquiring the NGP in April 2025, Perseus has drilled a total of 58,609 m, with the majority of this being resource definition drilling into the Tusker and Kilimani deposits. Infill drilling was designed to improve the average drill spacing across the deposit from 40 m × 40 m to a nominal drill pattern of 20 m × 40 m and was completed across the main Tusker mineralisation and the adjacent Kilimani deposit. Drilling remains ongoing across both Tusker and Kilimani and continues to support the current mineralisation interpretation across both deposits. More significant drill hole data and related drill results results received from the recent drilling include: Tusker Deposit NYZRCDD1374C: 51 m @ 4.43 g/t gold from 269 m including 4 m @ 42.04 g/t gold from 274 m; NYZDD1389: 36 m @ 6.28 g/t gold from 292 m including 4 m @ 47.82 g/t gold from 314 m; NYZDD1390: 10 m @ 15.38 g/t gold from 264 m; NYZDD1490: 33 m @ 3.14 g/t gold from 275 m including 2 m @ 32.28 g/t gold from 161 m; 61 m @ 4.35 g/t gold from 235 m; NYZRCDD1347: 62 m @ 2.38 g/t gold from 432 m; NYZRCDD1351: 63 m @ 6.49 g/t gold from 435 m including 1 m @ 307.8 g/t gold from 438 m; 16 m @ 6.15 g/t gold from 501 m including 6 m @ 14.73 g/t gold from 511 m; NYZRCDD1372: 69 m @ 3.94 g/t gold from 335 m including 21 m @ 7.99 g/t gold from 375 m; NYZRCDD1373: 57 m @ 6.50 g/t gold from 203 m including 11 m @ 26.93 g/t gold from 208 m; NYZRCDD1397: 59 m @ 4.39 g/t gold from 442 m and 64 m @ 2.91 g/t gold from 660 m including 23 m @ 4.36 g/t gold from 695 m NYZRCDD1399: 54 m @ 9.69 g/t gold from 577 m including 2 m @ 118.3 g/t gold from 591 m and 5 m @ 20.15 g/t gold from 601 m; NYZRCDD1401: 23 m @ 20.87 g/t gold from 496 m; NYZRCDD1404: 46 m @ 3.15 g/t gold from 550 m including 11 m @ 9.81 g/t gold from 567 m; NYZRCDD1405: 52 m @ 3.01 g/t gold from 506 m; 81 m @ 4.00 g/t gold from 597 m including 8 m @ 16.74 g/t gold from 625 m; NYZRCDD1419: 52 m @ 3.17 g/t gold from 348 m; NYZRCDD1422: 84 m @ 3.24 g/t gold from 339 m including 11 m @ 9.15 g/t gold from 392 m; Kilimani DEposit NYZRC1424: 22 m @ 4.14 g/t gold from 47 m; NYZRC1471: 44 m @ 4.36 g/t gold from 0 m including 3 m @ 43.56 g/t gold from 25 m; Further geotechnical, metallurgical and sterilisation drilling programs are on-going or planned, and are scheduled to be completed by December 2025. The results of this work, together with other key activities, will be incorporated into an updated Ore Reserve statement that is to be released to the market in the March 2026 quarter. ASX/TSX CODE: PRU CAPITAL STRUCTURE: Ordinary shares: 1,353,975,467 Performance rights: 9,343,976 REGISTERED OFFICE: Level 2 437 Roberts Road Subiaco WA 6008 Telephone: +61 8 6144 1700 DIRECTORS: Rick Menell Non-Executive Chairman Jeff Quartermaine Managing Director & CEO Amber Banfield Non-Executive Director Elissa Cornelius Non-Executive Director Dan Lougher Non-Executive Director John McGloin Non-Executive Director James Rutherford Non-Executive Director CONTACTS: Jeff Quartermaine Managing Director & CEO [email protected] Stephen Forman Investor Relations +61 484 036 681 [email protected] Nathan Ryan Media +61 420 582 887 [email protected] Competent Person Statement: The information in this report and the attachments that relate to exploration drilling results at the Nyanzaga Gold Project is based on, and fairly represents, information and supporting documentation prepared by Mr Glen Edwards, a Competent Person who is a Chartered Professional Geologist . Mr Edwards is the General Manager Exploration of the Company. Mr Edwards has sufficient experience, which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity being undertaken, to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2012 Edition of the 'Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves' ('JORC Code 2012') and to qualify as a 'Qualified Person' under National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ('NI 43-101'). Mr Edwards consents to the inclusion in this report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears. The information in this report that relates to the Mineral Resources and Ore Reserve at Nyanzaga was updated by the Company in a market announcement 'Perseus Mining proceeds with development of the Nyanzaga Gold Project' released on 28 April 2025. The Company confirms that all material assumptions underpinning those estimates and the production targets, or the forecast financial information derived therefrom, in that market release continue to apply and have not materially changed. The Company further confirms that material assumptions underpinning the estimates of Ore Reserves described in 'Technical Report — Nyanzaga Gold Project' dated 10 June 2025 continue to apply. Caution Regarding Forward Looking Information: This report contains forward-looking information which is based on the assumptions, estimates, analysis and opinions of management made in light of its experience and its perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, as well as other factors that management of the Company believes to be relevant and reasonable in the circumstances at the date that such statements are made, but which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made by the Company regarding, among other things: the price of gold, continuing commercial production at the Yaouré Gold Mine, the Edikan Gold Mine and the Sissingué Gold Mine without any major disruption, development of a mine at Nyanzaga, the receipt of required governmental approvals, the accuracy of capital and operating cost estimates, the ability of the Company to operate in a safe, efficient and effective manner and the ability of the Company to obtain financing as and when required and on reasonable terms. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list is not exhaustive of all factors and assumptions which may have been used by the Company. Although management believes that the assumptions made by the Company and the expectations represented by such information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that the forward-looking information will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any anticipated future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such factors include, among others, the actual market price of gold, the actual results of current exploration, the actual results of future exploration, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be evaluated, as well as those factors disclosed in the Company's publicly filed documents. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Perseus does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. Attachment 20250722_TSX Announcement_Exploration Update Nyanzaga_Final Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with GlobeNewswire. Business Upturn takes no editorial responsibility for the same. Ahmedabad Plane Crash
Hamilton Spectator
a day ago
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Perseus Mining Delivers Encouraging Drilling Results at Nyanzaga Gold Project
Perth, July 22, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — PERSEUS MINING DELIVERS ENCOURAGING DRILLING RESULTS FROM ITS CURRENT DRILL PROGRAM AT THE NYANZAGA GOLD PROJECT Perth, Western Australia/July 22, 2025/Perseus Mining Limited (ASX/TSX: PRU) is pleased to provide an update on ongoing resource definition drilling currently being conducted at its Nyanzaga Gold Project (NGP) in Tanzania and to announce some of the more significant drill results achieved since our last exploration announcement, dated December 5, 2024 (see release 'Confidence Boosting Infill Drilling at Nyanzaga Project). Below is a summary of the release. The full release with all drill hole data and results is available at , and . The current drilling program has been designed to further inform and advance Perseus's proposed open pit mining scenario at NGP as detailed in the Feasibility Study update, released to the market on April 25, 2025 (see release 'Perseus Mining proceeds with development of the Nyanzaga Gold Project'). Drill holes have been designed to infill existing drilling, collect additional information including metallurgical and geotechnical data and most importantly evaluate potential strike and depth extensions to the mineralisation. As of the end of June 2025, a total of 35,623 m of combined reverse circulation (RC) and diamond (DD) meters have been drilled into the Tusker and Kilimani deposits since the last update in December 2024 (refer Since acquiring the NGP in April 2025, Perseus has drilled a total of 58,609 m, with the majority of this being resource definition drilling into the Tusker and Kilimani deposits. Infill drilling was designed to improve the average drill spacing across the deposit from 40 m × 40 m to a nominal drill pattern of 20 m × 40 m and was completed across the main Tusker mineralisation and the adjacent Kilimani deposit. Drilling remains ongoing across both Tusker and Kilimani and continues to support the current mineralisation interpretation across both deposits. More significant drill hole data and related drill results results received from the recent drilling include: Tusker Deposit 61 m @ 4.35 g/t gold from 235 m; 16 m @ 6.15 g/t gold from 501 m including 6 m @ 14.73 g/t gold from 511 m; Kilimani DEposit Further geotechnical, metallurgical and sterilisation drilling programs are on-going or planned, and are scheduled to be completed by December 2025. The results of this work, together with other key activities, will be incorporated into an updated Ore Reserve statement that is to be released to the market in the March 2026 quarter. Competent Person Statement: The information in this report and the attachments that relate to exploration drilling results at the Nyanzaga Gold Project is based on, and fairly represents, information and supporting documentation prepared by Mr Glen Edwards, a Competent Person who is a Chartered Professional Geologist . Mr Edwards is the General Manager Exploration of the Company. Mr Edwards has sufficient experience, which is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity being undertaken, to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2012 Edition of the 'Australasian Code for Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves' ('JORC Code 2012') and to qualify as a 'Qualified Person' under National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ('NI 43-101'). Mr Edwards consents to the inclusion in this report of the matters based on his information in the form and context in which it appears. The information in this report that relates to the Mineral Resources and Ore Reserve at Nyanzaga was updated by the Company in a market announcement 'Perseus Mining proceeds with development of the Nyanzaga Gold Project' released on 28 April 2025. The Company confirms that all material assumptions underpinning those estimates and the production targets, or the forecast financial information derived therefrom, in that market release continue to apply and have not materially changed. The Company further confirms that material assumptions underpinning the estimates of Ore Reserves described in 'Technical Report — Nyanzaga Gold Project' dated 10 June 2025 continue to apply. Caution Regarding Forward Looking Information: This report contains forward-looking information which is based on the assumptions, estimates, analysis and opinions of management made in light of its experience and its perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, as well as other factors that management of the Company believes to be relevant and reasonable in the circumstances at the date that such statements are made, but which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made by the Company regarding, among other things: the price of gold, continuing commercial production at the Yaouré Gold Mine, the Edikan Gold Mine and the Sissingué Gold Mine without any major disruption, development of a mine at Nyanzaga, the receipt of required governmental approvals, the accuracy of capital and operating cost estimates, the ability of the Company to operate in a safe, efficient and effective manner and the ability of the Company to obtain financing as and when required and on reasonable terms. Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list is not exhaustive of all factors and assumptions which may have been used by the Company. Although management believes that the assumptions made by the Company and the expectations represented by such information are reasonable, there can be no assurance that the forward-looking information will prove to be accurate. Forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any anticipated future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such factors include, among others, the actual market price of gold, the actual results of current exploration, the actual results of future exploration, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be evaluated, as well as those factors disclosed in the Company's publicly filed documents. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Perseus does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. Attachment
Indian Express
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Namami Gange project: Let the rivers talk to each other
Cleaning the Yamuna is among the top priorities of the newly elected BJP government in Delhi. The keen interest from the central government, also led by the BJP, favours the project. The project also has the advantage of the Yamuna being part of the Namami Gange Programme (NGP). Delhi's state-driven effort to clean the Yamuna carries the prospect of valuable reciprocal learning, which can help shape a comprehensive policy ecosystem for rejuvenating India's rivers. The NGP, launched in 2014 as the Government of India's flagship programme, can boast of a discernible impact in improving the water quality and ecological status of the Ganga. Besides the recent cleaner Maha Kumbh, the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) offers the rising populations of keystone species such as the Ganges dolphin as evidence of the improved ecological status of the river. In over a decade of its implementation, the NGP's responsive policy and institutional experiments stand out as a departure from the earlier Ganga Action Plan. Implemented in mission mode, the NGP has interesting legal and institutional innovations to its credit. The foremost among these is that it has shifted from the regulatory framing of what was the Ministry of Environment and Forests to an executive approach, in the Ministry of Jal Shakti (earlier the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation). The programme also marks a shift from pollution abatement to improving the ecological condition of the river. The NGP has pursued a river basin approach informed by a plan produced by a consortium of the Indian Institutes of Technology. In celebrated river restoration programmes, like those in Europe, such shifts took decades. The International Commission for the Protection of the Rhine (ICPR), established in 1950 to restore the River Rhine, made these shifts only after the Sandoz disaster in 1986. The NMCG was accorded the status of an authority soon after it was launched through the River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection and Management) Authorities Order of 2016. The National Ganga River Basin Authority, constituted earlier, was dissolved through this order and was replaced with a National Ganga Council (NGC). There are other institutional innovations that show an unusual agility in policymaking. The NGC is headed by the Prime Minister with the chief ministers of the riparian states and 10 Union ministers as members. The NGC guides an empowered task force headed by the Union Minister for Jal Shakti, and an executive council headed by NMCG's director general with extensive financial and regulatory powers. The most striking feature of the 2016 order is the recognition of the subnational governments as important partners. It mandates a layered structure of state Ganga committees and district Ganga committees — accommodating the important roles of governments at different levels. Despite this deliberate effort, the subnational participation in Namami Gange has not been very encouraging. The absence of ownership of the programme — the basin states' legal, institutional and budgetary responses — raises questions about its enduring impact. This is where the NGP can leverage the Delhi government-driven project of cleaning the Yamuna for a model that can be scaled. The project can reveal the missing and less understood drivers, motivations, and channels of subnational mobilisation for river rejuvenation. Delhi's Yamuna project is a particularly complex one and can therefore make a useful contribution. The Yamuna, like all other major Indian rivers, is an interstate river. Improving its ecological status depends on reliable interstate cooperation mechanisms for enduring outcomes — a challenge that Delhi will need to address. At the same time, it faces water quality deterioration due to a pollutant load of close to 80 per cent from the city-state of Delhi. This singular characteristic brings the role of a distinct territorial entity, that too of an urban agglomeration, into sharp focus for improving river water quality. Studies have shown that Delhi's uncaptured and untreated sewage is responsible for the pollution load in the Yamuna. This is a classic instance where improvement in river water quality directly depends on improved urban governance. Delhi can, therefore, demonstrate what states should do for enduring outcomes for the NGP, and the nature of Centre-state collaboration that is required to achieve this. In Europe, it took a long time to get to the foundational Water Framework Directive. That experience is all about how institutions such as the ICPR mobilised the internal responses of sovereign nations in Europe. The NGP can potentially leverage responses like Delhi's cleaning of the Yamuna towards creating a policy and institutional ecosystem to rejuvenate India's rivers. Chokkakula is the president and chief executive of Centre for Policy Research (CPR), New Delhi. Dasgupta is a research associate at CPR. Views are personal
Irish Examiner
09-07-2025
- General
- Irish Examiner
Genotyping reveals 17% of calves registered with incorrect sire
In the calving season rush, mistakes are inevitable, and these are being revealed by the National Genotyping Programme (NGP). This year, about 17% of tag samples submitted by farmers for genotyping revealed the wrong sire was registered, there were 5-6% dam errors, and 3.2% breed errors. The NGP offers free genotyping of all breeding stock in the first year, followed by mandatory €6 per calf genotyping thereafter. As well as correcting registration errors and the accompanying risk of in-breeding, genotyping identifies problem animals with chromosomal abnormalities. It also helps the agri-industry by improving the reliability of genomic breeding values; and by generating commercial beef value figures; enabling access to tools like Genocells, and discovery of genetically elite animals. 'For herds that sign up this summer, in year one, 2025, they would genotype all their ungenotyped breeding stock", said Gearoid. "That would be all the cows, in-calf heifers, heifer calves, any stock bulls they have on the farm. Anything that's ungenotyped, we would genotype them this year free of charge, using button tags. That would be completely free. We'd have all your existing herd genotyped then'. This is followed by genotyping of all calves at birth, from January 2026. 'That's the heifer calves, bull calves, beef calves, all get genotyped at birth using double tissue tags', Gearoid said. The farmer will register their calves online and send off their DNA. 'Any sires, dams or sex incorrectly recorded by the farmer will be identified by the DNA sample, and the DNA will correct it on the passport or blue card, before it is issued', Gearoid said. Since the NGP was launched in 2023, the share of the national dairy herd that is genotyped has increased very significantly. Herds of any size may join the NGP. 'This year, so far, we have about 745,000 calves genotyped through the programme. That would be the bones of 40% of the calves that have been born in the country. The average turnaround time, from when the sample arrived in the lab to coming out the other side with the genotype, was about four days. At times it was as low as three days. In terms of from birth to blue card, from the calf being born on farm to a blue card being issued to the farmer, the average is around 12 to 14 days'. While a very small percentage of samples have encountered delays for a variety of reasons, the ICBF has agreed to automatically issue the passport after 10 days in the lab. Gearoid explained, 'To genotype 100 cows is €18 per animal normally, that's €1,800 worth of genotyping that a farmer will get free of charge this year'. 'From 2026, when you're genotyping your calves, rather than paying €18 to genotype an animal, the farmer is only paying about €6, €4 of that to ICBF for the genotyping, and €2 to cover postage, and the cost of the additional double tissue tags. That's a big benefit'. 'All the herds in the National Genotyping Programme will have that extra information on the mart board, which will help make them that little bit more saleable', said Mark Waters, also of ICBF, in the podcast. 'Another side benefit is a service being launched by some of the milk recording services, called Genocells. That's a very novel service whereby from a single bulk tank sample, using the DNA in the milk, we can actually tell which cows are contributing the largest proportion of the Somatic Cell Count, without having to individually test each cow's milk', Mark explained. This is possible only where the cows have been genotyped. Genotyped herds will also be able to avail of other technological breakthroughs. 'We'll be able to identify cows in farmers' herds that are potentially carrying a copy of a lethal recessive gene ,and making sure that they are not being mated to a sire who's also a carrier, increasing the chances of producing a calf that may have an issue, or stillbirth or something like that', Gearoid explained. With the NGP, Ireland aims to be the first country to genotype the entire national cattle herd.
AllAfrica
29-06-2025
- Business
- AllAfrica
US builds next-generation bunker buster with China in mind
After blasting Iran's nuke bunkers with 13-ton bombs, the US is racing to build a smarter, sleeker penetrator for the next war, possibly with China. This month, The War Zone (TWZ) reported that in the wake of the US Air Force's first combat use of the 13,000-kilogram GBU-57/B massive ordnance penetrator during the June strikes on Iran's Fordow and Natanz nuclear facilities under Operation Midnight Hammer, the US Department of Defense has accelerated efforts to develop a successor: the next generation penetrator (NGP). The strikes, which involved 14 MOPs delivered exclusively by B-2 bombers, underscored both the weapon's precision and its operational limitations, particularly in light of the B-21 Raider's reduced payload capacity. A February 2024 US Air Force contracting notice outlines NGP requirements, including sub-9,900-kilogram warheads capable of precision strikes with a circular error probable of within 2.2 meters. Notably, the NGP may feature standoff capability via propulsion systems, improved void-sensing or embedded fuzing technologies, and enhanced or scalable terminal effects. The push for a successor, spurred by lessons from past MOP development and growing global interest in deeply buried facilities, targets adversaries beyond Iran, including North Korea, China, and Russia. The US Air Force aims to receive initial prototypes within two years of contract award, though a complete operational deployment timeline remains unspecified, according to the same February 2024 USAF notice. The future NGP is likely to form part of the Long Range Strike system, alongside platforms like the B-21 and the AGM-181A Long-Range Stand-Off (LRSO) missile, making it a critical asset for penetrating hardened targets. This need to address hardened targets more effectively, highlighted by possible limitations in the Iran strikes, may have prompted the US to fast-track NGP development, especially with peer adversaries like China in mind. Multiple media outlets cited a leaked US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) report stating that US strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities failed to destroy the core of the program and merely set it back by months. Du Wenlong noted in the South China Morning Post that Iran's Fordow site lies 80 meters underground, 30 meters deeper than the GBU-57's stated penetration capability, raising doubts as to whether the strike hit critical infrastructure. Song Zhongping said in the same article that although the US dropped 14 bombs, satellite imagery showed six craters, suggesting two bombs may have been aimed at each target, possibly to reinforce penetration. He added that while some infrastructure may have been damaged, complete elimination is implausible. US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth downplayed the DIA report's findings, calling them 'preliminary,' and noting that the report itself states battle damage assessment takes weeks to complete. Hegseth said the report was not coordinated with the intelligence community and suffers from low confidence due to information gaps. These Iranian lessons could foreshadow far more complex strike dilemmas in a potential conflict with China. In a November 2024 RAND report, Nathan Beauchamp-Mustafaga and others at RAND noted that if initial US strikes on China's maritime and surface assets fail, the US may need to launch long-range conventional attacks against China's buried inland facilities. Beauchamp-Mustafaga and others wrote that command-and-control nodes and missile storage sites are essential to sustaining People's Liberation Army (PLA) operations. Satellite imagery cited by Newsweek in May 2025 shows a 1,500-acre site dubbed 'Beijing Military City' near Qinglonghu, southwest of the capital, with deep pits believed to house hardened bunkers capable of sheltering China's leadership in a nuclear war. Hans Kristensen and others wrote in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists in March 2025 that China built over 320 underground missile silos between 2021 and 2025 at Yumen in Gansu, Hami in Xinjiang, and Ordos in Inner Mongolia, significantly expanding its nuclear deterrent capabilities. They stated these silos, with standardized layouts, are designed for solid-fuel DF-41 ICBMs with potential launch-on-warning capability, supported by hardened command infrastructure and possibly nearby underground storage. They also noted continued DF-5B silo construction, reinforcing survivability through dual platforms. Furthermore, Greg Weaver argued in an April 2025 Atlantic Council report that standoff capability is essential for enhancing US aircraft survivability when striking mainland China. He noted that China's advanced air defenses and long-range missiles pose serious threats to forward-deployed US aircraft, making it vital to use standoff delivery systems that launch from outside the range of Chinese defenses. Yet even with advanced penetrators and standoff options, strikes on the Chinese mainland carry severe risks. In a 2021 Journal of Indo-Pacific Affairs article, Brian McLean argued that while some strategists believe China can differentiate between conventional and nuclear attacks, hitting leadership bunkers or missile forces might be mistaken for a decapitation or disarmament attempt. He warned that even conventional strikes affecting China's nuclear posture or regime stability could provoke a nuclear response, especially if China perceives its second-strike capability as compromised. As the US weighs options beyond tactical reach, the broader question of deterrence comes into play. McLean said the best way to avoid escalation may be a strategy of deterrence by denial, convincing China not to attack Taiwan in the first place. However, Chen Xi wrote in a September 2022 article for the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) that deterrence by denial hinges on forward-deployed forces and regional basing, both of which are increasingly vulnerable to China's growing missile capabilities and anti-access/area denial systems. Chen cautioned that this posture could fuel perceptions of encirclement or US intent to strike first, raising escalation risks. He also pointed to practical limitations, including the difficulty of dispersing assets across allied territories, uncertain host-nation support, and ambiguous defense commitments that may weaken US credibility.
