China has a new submarine-loaded missile that can attack the mainland US from the South China Sea, according to reports.
US Navy Admiral Samuel Paparo, head of the US Pacific Fleet, told a group of military journalists in Washington on Friday that China’s Jin-class submarines are “equipped with JL-3 ICBMs,” Bloomberg reported.
US Vice President Kamala Harris is greeted by Admiral Samuel Paparo, left, commander of the US Pacific Fleet, as she arrives at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, prior to continue to Washington, Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)
“They were built to threaten the United States,” the admiral said. We’re keeping a close eye on those subs.
CHINA HIT US ABOUT SUBMARINE IN SOUTH CHINA SEA AFTER COLLISION WITH UNKNOWN OBJECT
The Department of Defense issued its annual report on China’s military capabilities in November 2021, which suggested that the People’s Liberation Army Navy, or PLAN, will soon gain the ability to attack the mainland US from littoral waters. , particularly the South China Sea and the Bohai Gulf.
Asked by reporters whether the six submarines equipped with the JL-3 missiles had been on patrols near Hawaii, Bloomberg said Paparo declined to comment.
Chinese President Xi Jinping looks on as he attends a session during the G20 Summit in Nusa Dua, on the Indonesian resort island of Bali, November 16, 2022.
(WILLY KURNIAWAN/PISCINA/AFP via Getty Images)
The Pentagon report said the PLAN had 12 nuclear submarines, six of which were equipped with the earlier ICBMs called JL-2.
SATELLITE IMAGES SUGGEST CHINA MAY HAVE DEVELOPED A NEW CLASS OF PROPOSED NUCLEAR SUBMARINE
The JL-2, according to the report, was the first credible nuclear deterrent based in the China Sea.
The JL-3 has a longer range than the JL-2, giving China the range it would need to reach the US.
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