Latest news with #PLAN
AllAfrica
a day ago
- Business
- AllAfrica
Japan's new hypersonic missile aims at China's navy, NoKo nukes
Japan has unveiled a mobile hypersonic missile system designed to outmaneuver China's layered carrier defenses and threaten North Korea's survivable nuclear arsenal, marking a decisive shift from a purely defensive posture to a counterstrike capability. This month, Asian Military Review reported that at Fuji Firepower 2025, the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) unveiled the ground-launched Hyper Velocity Guided Projectile (HVGP), a mobile hypersonic strike missile system developed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries under contract from Japan's Advanced Technology and Logistics Agency (ATLA). The HVGP program, launched in 2018, marked its first successful test firing in early 2024 at a US range. Its operational deployment has been advanced to 2026. The Block 1 HVGP, mounted on an 8×8 tactical truck with two containerized, solid-fuel boost-glide missiles, has a range of 500–900 km and reaches Mach 5. Upgraded variants, Block 2A and 2B, are planned for 2027 and 2030, with their ranges extended to 2,000 kilometers and 3,000 kilometers, respectively. The HVGP employs satellite and inertial navigation, with a naval-targeting variant using RF imaging derived from Doppler shift and a land-attack version deploying explosively formed projectiles. Both are designed for high-speed maneuvering post-boost. Planned deployments in Kyushu and Hokkaido underscore its strategic intent to counter regional threats. Concurrently, Japan is also developing the scramjet-powered Hypersonic Cruise Missile (HCV) to extend strike capabilities further. These systems are at the core of Japan's revised defense strategy, which aims to safeguard its territorial integrity amid increasing regional security pressures. Previously, Asia Times reported that Japan announced four hypersonic missile tests conducted in California between August 2024 and January 2025. These systems are envisioned for strategic interdiction, counterforce, and even counter-leadership operations. In line with developing strategic interdiction capabilities, Japan has recently conducted the first domestic test firing of its short-range Type 88 anti-ship missile and plans to develop the long-range Type 12. However, James Conway and Jerry McAbee mention in a March 2024 RealClearDefense article that by 2030, subsonic cruise missiles and supersonic ballistic missiles may become obsolete against the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). Japan's current arsenal of subsonic cruise and ballistic missiles faces significant limitations: subsonic cruise missiles allow a longer intercept window despite their maneuverability, while ballistic missiles, though fast, follow predictable arcs that are easier to track. These constraints justify Japan's shift toward maneuverable hypersonic systems, such as the HVGP. Underscoring this point, Daniel Rice's December 2024 report for the China Maritime Studies Institute (CMSI) highlights that the PLAN carrier strategy is built around a three-layer defense system, enabling increasingly autonomous and far-reaching blue-water operations. Rice explains that the carrier battlegroup's defenses are arranged in concentric zones: the 'Outer Defense Zone' (185–400 kilometers), maintained by submarines and J-15 fighters for long-range strikes and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR); the 'Middle Defense Zone' (45–185 kilometers), secured by destroyers and frigates equipped with radar, vertical launch systems (VLS), and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capabilities; and the 'Inner Defense Zone' (100 meters–45 kilometers), protected by close-in weapons and point-defense systems. Aside from strategic interdiction, Japan's hypersonic weapons may be poised to play a critical role in its counterstrike capabilities against North Korea's nuclear arsenal. In a March 2024 article for the United States Studies Center (USSC), Masashi Murano notes that Japan's counterstrike capability focuses on long-range, conventional counterforce strikes against military assets, such as missile bases, rather than leadership or cities. To that end, Murano mentions that Japan is acquiring Tomahawk cruise missiles, improved Type 12 missiles, and hypersonic missiles. However, Murano cautions that Japan still faces deficiencies in intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities to hit time-sensitive targets such as transporter erector launchers (TEL), its counterstrike doctrine is still a work in progress, and the risks of escalation remain major issues it should tackle in building its counterstrike capabilities. In addition, North Korea has taken several measures to harden its nuclear arsenal against a pre-emptive counterforce strike. Hans Kristensen and other writers mention in a July 2024 article for the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists that North Korea is actively pursuing solid-fuel rocket intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM), sea-based platforms such as nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBN), and tactical nuclear weapons, which together enhance survivability by making its arsenal more mobile, concealable, and less reliant on vulnerable fixed launch sites. Kristensen and others note that North Korea's deeply buried enrichment sites, continued fissile production, and development of tactical warheads all point to a doctrine that embraces redundancy and dispersion, hallmarks of a survivable deterrent. Given that sanctions and threats of military action have failed to dissuade the North Korean regime from continuing its nuclear program and stopping its belligerent behavior, some strategists argue that targeting the regime itself might compel behavioral change. In an April 2023 NK News commentary, Bruce Bennett notes that the Kim regime's prioritization of military buildup over basic human needs, along with exhortations to the North Korean public to sacrifice for the country's defense, reflects deep anxiety over regime survival and control. Bennett observes that deployments like MQ-9 Reaper drones in Japan, air-launched cruise missiles (ALCM) from B-52s flying over the Korean Peninsula, and Japan's new hypersonic systems may concern the Kim regime over its survival. Yet, as Lauren Sukin points out in a February 2024 article for the United States Institute of Peace (USIP), North Korea's nuclear policy calls for automatic nuclear retaliation should its command and control system, including Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un, be attacked. Sukin adds that the US, and by extension, its allies, forcing regime change on North Korea could end, at best, in an even more anti-US regime than that headed by Kim Jong Un. At worst, she says such attempts could result in regional instability or North Korea using chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons. Japan's rollout of hypersonic strike weapons marks a significant moment in Northeast Asian security. While they offer a powerful conventional deterrent against China's carrier strike groups and North Korea's dispersed nuclear forces, they also heighten the risk of arms racing, strategic miscalculation, and regional instability.
Hindustan Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Taiwan detects 12 Chinese military aircraft, 7 naval vessels near air defence territory
Taiwan's Minister of National Defence (MND) detected 12 sorties of PLA aircraft and seven PLAN vessels around its territory on Tuesday. Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te instructed the Taiwanese military to bolster its security surveillance amid rising tensions between Israel and Iran(REUTERS) According to Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence (MND), the aircraft vessels were detected until 6 AM (local time). It was reported that 10 out of 12 sorties crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's southwestern and southeastern air defence identification zone (ADIZ). "12 sorties of PLA aircraft and 7 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC 8) today. 10 out of 12 sorties crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's northern, southwestern and southeastern ADIZ. We have monitored the situation and responded," the MND stated. On Monday, the MND detected five Chinese military aircraft and nine naval vessels operating around Taiwan until 6 am (local time). "5 sorties of PLA aircraft and 9 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC 8) today. 3 out of 5 sorties crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's southwestern and southeastern ADIZ. We have monitored the situation and responded accordingly," the Taiwanese MND stated on X. This follows a recent pattern of China's escalated manoeuvres around Taiwan. Taiwan has been governed independently since 1949. However, China continues to claim Taiwan as part of its territory under the "One China" principle and insists on eventual reunification, by force if necessary. Meanwhile, last week, Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te instructed the Taiwanese military to bolster its security surveillance amid rising tensions between Israel and Iran, Central News Agency (CNA) reported. Notably, the order comes amid rising tensions in West Asia. In a routine meeting with military officials on Thursday, the Taiwanese President observed that the conflict in the region has not deterred China from continuing its pressure along the First and Second Island Chains, according to a statement released by the Presidential Office. Lai Ching-te said that the Chinese aircraft carriers, the Shandong and Liaoning, have recently been active in nearby waters. He added that Taiwan must remain in close contact with its allies to ensure it can respond swiftly under all circumstances, CNA reported. Taiwan's President Lai said the United States Indo-Pacific Command has raised its Force Protection Condition level across the region. He directed the Ministry of National Defence and the national security team to monitor the situation and its impact on regional security closely.
India.com
5 days ago
- Politics
- India.com
Like US, will China join Iran-Israel war to support Tehran? Is its army capable of...? Will it be a shocker for...
Like US, will China join Iran-Israel war to support Tehran? Is its arm capable of…? Will it be a shocker for… The United States has recently joined the Iran-Israel war and carried out precision attacks on Iran's nuclear sites — Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. The sudden attacks by America have escalated tensions in the Middle East. The question arising is: Will China, which is the largest trading partner and oil buyer of Iran, support Tehran during this tough time? Does the People's Liberation Army (PLA) have the capability to fight a war 5,000 km away? Let us know how much military power China has: China-Iran Relations China and Iran share a good bilateral relations with each other. Both the countries have a 25-year strategic cooperation agreement (2021), covering energy, trade, infrastructure and military cooperation. Oil trade: Iran supplies about 2 million barrels of oil to China per day. This accounts 15 percent of the Beijing's oil imports. 90 percent of Iran's oil exports go to China via 'dark fleet' tankers to evade Western sanctions. Strategic Partnership: Iran is China's important partner to counter US influence in the Middle East. Military Cooperation: China has supplied missile technology, drone parts, and rocket fuel to Iran. Will China Enters Iran War? China's Military Power- The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA), a massive force of 2 million active personnel and 1 million reservists equipped with advanced weaponry, presents a significant military power. However, its ability to effectively project power into the Middle East, a region 5,000 kilometers distant, warrants examination of both its capabilities and constraints. Soldiers: 9.7 lakh active soldiers. Weapons: 7,000 tanks, 35,000 armoured vehicles and 12,000 artillery pieces. Navy (PLAN) Warships: 425 ships, including 3 aircraft carriers (Liaoning, Shandong, Fujian), 72 submarines and 150 warships. Missiles: DF-21D and DF-26 'Carrier Killer' ballistic missiles, which has rage of 1800–4000 km, and can destroy naval targets. Capability: The PLAN has an increasing presence in the Indian Ocean. It has only one overseas military base (Djibouti), which is small and surrounded by Western bases. Air Force (PLAAF) Aircraft: 3,200 aircraft, including 600 stealth J-20 fighter jets, 400 J-16s and 250 bombers (H-6K). Missiles: PL-15 air-to-air missile (200 km range) and CJ-20 cruise missile. Rocket Force (PLARF) Missiles: 2000 ballistic and cruise missiles, including the DF-41 ICBM (12000 km range) and the hypersonic DF-17. Cyber and Space Forces China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) possesses sophisticated cyber warfare capabilities, including the ability to disrupt radar and communication systems. Their space-based assets, comprising approximately 400 satellites, offer surveillance and targeting support. While the PLA can provide indirect support, such as intelligence gathering, its direct combat effectiveness remains limited. Limitation: China has restricted itself from supplying advanced weapons like PL-15 missile to Iran as it increases the risk of global sanctions. Logistical Challenge: The People's Liberation Army (PLA) faces significant logistical hurdles in projecting power over long distances. Its current capabilities for maritime and air transport are insufficient to support military operations 5,000 kilometers from its bases. Online commentary suggests the PLA's effectiveness is limited to coastal regions, making it vulnerable in more distant conflicts. Economic Interests: Oil supplies from Iran is a major source of China's energy security. If Israel and US attack Iran's oil refineries, China's economy could be affected. If China joins the Iran war, a military operation 5,000 km away requires massive naval and air support, which Beijing does not have. Its military is inexperienced in foreign warfare and don't have overseas bases. China's foreign policy prioritizes non-intervention, favouring diplomatic engagement and economic assistance over military involvement in international conflicts. While possessing a formidable military, the People's Liberation Army's capabilities are primarily geared towards regional defence, limiting its potential for distant interventions like those in the Middle East. This, combined with China's non-interventionist stance and concerns about US confrontation, further restricts its propensity for direct military action abroad.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
China's Fujian carrier could carry out swarm attack, delivering shock effect to enemy
China's state-owned national broadcaster CCTV has announced that the nation's most advanced aircraft carrier, the Fujian, will be able to conduct 'deck load strikes' once commissioned. This is a type of swarm attack in which a large number of aircraft can be launched simultaneously. The tactic, widely employed by the US Navy during the Vietnam War, is touted to enable the Chinese Navy to gain a 'first mover' advantage during battle. It had been previously speculated that Fujian would be equipped with the capability, but this is the first time it has been publicly confirmed. "China's aircraft carrier technology is marking a historic leap as it enters the critical phase of combat capability development," CCTV explained in its report. The broadcaster added that the domestically produced carrier has been "progressing steadily" since its first sea trial in May last year. According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the carrier will soon join the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), bringing the fleet's carrier strength up to three. The Fujian is expected to be operational by the end of 2025, joining China's other carriers, the Liaoning and Shandong. "The PLAN equipped with three aircraft carriers, will greatly enhance its sea escort and defence capabilities," CCTV observed. "Compared to traditional aircraft carriers with ski-jump flight decks, the electromagnetic launch system of the Fujian can greatly improve the efficiency of carrier-based aircraft deployment," it added. It's just this technology that forms the foundation of the claimed 'deck load strikes' of the carrier. It will enable the rapid deployment of multiple aircraft over a short span of time. "Launching a swarm attack could overwhelm the enemy, securing the first-mover advantage of early detection and pre-emptive attacks," CCTV explained. According to military analyst Cao Weidong, conducting such a launch would test all of the ship's systems and crew. However, he noted that if the crew could perform up to the standard seen in training, "the carrier's full potential could be realized." "Sortieing as many aircraft as possible in the first wave of attack to destroy, suppress and deter enemy targets enables the carrier to secure air superiority, establish maritime dominance or support landing operations," Cao told CCTV. "In warfare, this allows the carrier to achieve first detection, first strike in the initial attack, inflicting significant damage and securing a strategic advantage," he continued. If a mix of aircraft could be launched, the carrier could also be capable of conducting something called 'Alpha Strikes'. While total number of aircraft vary, such attacks typically involve getting around half of all aircraft onboard airborne in short order. During such operations, the carrier will tend to remain heading into the wind and at General Quarters—an announcement made aboard a naval warship to signal that all hands must go to battle stations—ready to recover aircraft returning from sorties or damaged during battle. According to the late US Admiral James Holloway—commander of the U.S. Seventh Fleet during the Vietnam War—Alpha Strikes were deployed by the US for the very first time "for the shock effect or because of the necessity to penetrate very heavy defenses." "On an Alpha Strike, all available aircraft on the carrier were organized into a single strike group," Admiral Holloway said when discussing naval history at a conference in 1991.
CNN
16-06-2025
- Politics
- CNN
China's aircraft carriers send message in the open Pacific for the first time – and bigger and more powerful ships are coming
For the past month Chinese aircraft carrier strike groups have been operating further from home shores and in greater strength than ever before, testing state-of-the-art technology and sending a message they are a force to be reckoned with, analysts and officials say. Since early May, a People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) flotilla led by the carrier Shandong has conducted exercises north of the Philippines; its newest carrier, the soon-to-be commissioned Fujian, has been on sea trials in disputed waters west of the Korean Peninsula; and its oldest carrier, the Liaoning has led exercises in the Pacific waters of Japan's exclusive economic zone. During the drills the Fujian for the first time conducted aircraft take-off and landing operations at sea using its advanced electromagnetic catapult system (EMALS), regional defense officials said. That's a significant development. Only one other carrier in the world has that system – the US Navy's newest carrier, the USS Gerald R Ford. Last Monday, the Japanese Defense Ministry said the Shandong and its support ships had been exercising in the waters southeast of the island of Miyako Island in southern Okinawa prefecture, putting two Chinese carrier strike groups in the open Pacific for the first time. At the center of that box of exercises is Taiwan, the democratically ruled island claimed by China's Communist Party despite never having controlled it. Chinese leader Xi Jinping has vowed to 'achieve reunification' with the island, using force if necessary. Analysts noted that the Pacific exercises specifically covered areas through which US naval support of Taiwan, in the event of conflict there, would have to pass. A Taiwanese security official told CNN that during the month of May, the PLAN regularly deployed about 70 warships and coast guard vessels across waters in the first island chain — all the way from the Bohai Sea and Yellow Sea to the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea. 'The projection of power is beyond China's own defensive needs,' the Taiwanese official said, unless it wants to assert the entire first island chain is its internal waters. The first island chain stretches from Japan to the Philippines and further down to Indonesia as is seen as a strategically vital line to both China and the US. Some analysts say Beijing may be laying the groundwork for that with so-called 'salami slicing' tactics, or pushing its claims and presence in small but unrelenting steps until it's too late for an opponent to stop them. Besides Taiwan, the waters inside that first island chain include the Japanese-controlled Senkaku Islands, called the Diaoyus in China and, like Taiwan, claimed by it as sovereign territory. Chinese maritime forces have been increasing their visibility around those islands. According to statistics from the Japanese Defense Ministry, more than 100 Chinese vessels have appeared in the contiguous zone of the islands – the waters between them – for all but one of the past 24 months. Also within the first island chain are disputed islands in the South China Sea that have seen violent flare-ups between Chinese and Philippine forces as Beijing tries to aggressively assert its claim over geographical features in the waterway through which trillions of dollars in trade passes each year. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called out Beijing tactics at a recent defense forum in Singapore. 'Any unilateral attempt to change the status quo in the South China Sea and the first island chain by force or coercion is unacceptable,' Hegseth said in a speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue, noting the persistent PLA presence around Taiwan and harassment and intimidation tactics in the South China Sea. 'It has to be clear to all that Beijing is credibly preparing to potentially use military force to alter the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific,' Hegseth said. While Hegseth focused on China's activities inside the first island chain, the PLA Navy's recent movements have it operating carriers beyond the second island chain, which runs from the Japanese main island of Honshu southeast to the US territories of Saipan and Guam and then southwest to Yap, Palau and New Guinea. Japanese officials reported last week two Chinese carrier groups operating well out into the open Pacific. 'It is believed that China is planning to improve the operational capability of its aircraft carriers and their ability to conduct operations in distant areas of the sea,' Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said last Monday, noting that China has demonstrated for the first time the ability to operate a carrier in the waters east of Iwo Jima and close to Japan's easternmost island Minamitorishima. 'The PLA is demonstrating a capability for sustained carrier ops outside of the first island chain. This is certainly a significant milestone for the PLAN,' said Ray Powell, director of SeaLight, a maritime transparency project at Stanford University's Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation. 'Beijing is using the PLAN to signal its growing maritime power and willingness to use it,' said Carl Schuster, a former US Navy captain and Hawaii-based analyst. A PLA Navy press release on Tuesday acknowledged the carrier activity in waters well out into the Pacific and emphasized that they are defense-minded. 'The Chinese Navy's Liaoning and Shandong aircraft carrier formations recently went to the Western Pacific and other waters to conduct training to test the troops' far sea defense and joint combat capabilities. This is a routine training,' the release quoted Chinese navy spokesperson Wang Xuemeng as saying, adding that the exercises are 'not targeting specific countries.' Overall, Schuster said China is making a very clear statement with the series of exercises. 'Although Beijing has characterized these activities as routine training and trials, its neighbors did not miss the related strategic message: China has become a major naval power that can and will apply that power in their waters if it chooses,' Schuster said. Only one other naval power, the United States, has the capability to operate two or more carrier strike groups at such distances. US Navy carrier strike groups usually consist of the carrier plus cruisers and/or destroyers equipped with the Aegis missile system to defend the prized asset at their heart. Analysts noted the Chinese carrier groups in the Pacific have a similar formation and include some of the PLAN's newest and most powerful surface ships, large Type 055 guided-missile destroyers as well as new but smaller Type 052DM destroyers. With a displacement of around 12,000 tons, the Type 055s are considered by many naval analysts to be the most powerful surface combatants afloat and a centerpiece of what is now the world's largest naval force, a title the PLAN took from the US Navy around 2020. A report Tuesday in the state-run Global Times said the PLAN may be looking to operate carrier strike groups in all the world's oceans like the US Navy does. Chinese military affairs expert Zhang Junshe told the tabloid that Beijing's expanding overseas business and cultural interests justify its naval expansion, including the ability of carriers to operate far from Chinese shores. New carrier training may be seen in the Indian and Atlantic oceans, Zhang said. The Fujian, China's newest aircraft carrier, is likely to be pivotal in the any PLA Navy plans to operate well out into the Pacific or other oceans. Estimated to displace 80,000 tons, it's believed to the largest non-American warship ever built and able to carry a fleet of about 50 aircraft, up from 40 on Liaoning and Shandong. During its sea trials in the Yellow Sea last month, the Fujian conducted aircraft take-off and landing operations, according to South Korean defense officials. The trials marked the first time a Chinese carrier had conducted such an activity inside the Provisional Measures Zone (PMZ), a disputed area where China and South Korea have agreed to both oversee fisheries management, but where friction between Beijing and Seoul persists. The presence of the Fujian in the PMZ was reported by South Korea's Chosun Ilbo, and later confirmed by South Korean officials to CNN. The take-off and landing operations are significant as it marks the first time the Fujian has done so at sea, using its electromagnetic catapult system. The system allows carrier aircraft to take off with heavier weapon and fuel loads than those operating off the Shandong and Liaoning, which feature ski-jump type take-off ramps, enabling Fujian's aircraft to strike enemy targets from greater distances. The Fujian is expected to carry the naval version of the J-35, a twin-engine stealth fighter jet that can't operate off a China's older carriers. And China is building another carrier, for now known as the Type 004, which is expected to not only employ EMALS technology, but also – unlike Fujian but like the USS Ford – be nuclear-powered. Nuclear power will extend the range of Chinese naval air fleet significantly because, as the carrier doesn't need to be refueled, it can stay at sea longer and farther away from replenishment tankers. 'Beijing's carrier program, like its fleet, is expanding and improving rapidly, not just with new ships but with new aircraft. That trend signals Beijing's maritime intent,' Schuster said. But even with the new equipment and expanded range, analysts expressed caution on overestimating the PLA Navy's abilities. Compared to the US, which has been operating carrier strike groups in the far seas for decades, China is very much at the beginning of the learning curve. 'China's carrier force is still very much developmental at this stage. Still, China is closing the gap,' said Powell, the SeaLight analyst. CNN's Eric Cheung, Gawon Bae, Yoonjung Seo and Yumi Asada contributed to this report.
