{"id":1363850,"date":"2022-03-08T08:01:48","date_gmt":"2022-03-08T13:01:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1363850"},"modified":"2022-03-08T08:06:28","modified_gmt":"2022-03-08T13:06:28","slug":"steps-the-u-s-can-take-to-defend-against-chinas-missiles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/steps-the-u-s-can-take-to-defend-against-chinas-missiles\/","title":{"rendered":"Steps the U.S. Can Take to Defend Against China\u2019s Missiles"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsteps-the-u-s-can-take-to-defend-against-chinas-missiles%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1363850&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2 class=\"title-alt-01\"><span class=\"font-color-01\">U.S. Challenged to Defend Against Chinese Missiles<\/span><\/h2>\n<div class=\"article-top-info font-secondary\">\n<p>\n                                        <strong class=\"date\">3\/7\/2022<\/strong><br \/>\n                                        <br \/><span class=\"author\"><br \/>\n                                                By<br \/>\nJon\u00a0Harper                                            <\/span>\n                                <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-main-img\">\n                                <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nationaldefensemagazine.org\/-\/media\/sites\/magazine\/2022\/03\/istock-514100540.ashx?h=500&#038;w=878&#038;la=en&#038;hash=0F0F5EB1B26A8D8C8AD0DAD8340D6275\" alt=\"\" \/>\n                            <\/div>\n<p class=\"photo-credit\">iStock illustration<\/p>\n<p>China\u2019s inventory of advanced missiles would be one of the thorniest problems facing U.S. military forces in the event of a conflagration in the Indo-Pacific region over the fate of Taiwan or other flashpoints. National security experts are recommending steps the United States can take to mitigate the threat before it\u2019s too late.<\/p>\n<p>Beijing\u2019s land-based missile systems are managed by the People\u2019s Liberation Army Rocket Force. Its inventory includes a variety of conventional mobile, ground-launched short-, medium- and intermediate-range ballistic missiles and ground-launched cruise missiles, with the capability of conducting precision strikes against ground targets and naval targets, according to the Pentagon\u2019s latest report on \u201cMilitary and Security Developments Involving the People\u2019s Republic of China.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe PLARF is a critical component of the PRC\u2019s \u2026 strategy to deter and counter third-party intervention in regional conflicts,\u201d the study said.<\/p>\n<p>In 2020, the rocket force began fielding its first operational hypersonic weapon system, the DF-17, the report noted. Hypersonic weapons can fly faster than Mach 5 with a high level of maneuverability that makes it challenging for traditional missile defense systems to defeat them.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe investments that we\u2019ve seen the Chinese make in hypersonics are frankly startling,\u201d said Dr. Mark Lewis, executive director of the National Defense Industrial Association\u2019s Emerging Technologies Institute, and former director of defense research and engineering for modernization at the Pentagon.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo a certain extent I have to tip my hat to them,\u201d he said during a recent panel hosted by the Hudson Institute. \u201cIt has given them a capability that \u2026 is increasingly concerning.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Last year, Beijing tested what has been dubbed a fractional orbital bombardment system, which reportedly circled the Earth before deploying a hypersonic glide vehicle that landed in China.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was a difficult thing to do technically, so it shows that the Chinese have clearly developed a level of technical prowess that is notable,\u201d Lewis said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut it also shows intent,\u201d he added. \u201cTo me, it signals that the Chinese are looking at technologies that not only allow them to control the space in their immediate domain [in the Indo-Pacific]. They\u2019re looking at global capabilities, and they\u2019re using technologies to enhance that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The PLA has developed a strategy that focuses on using offensive strikes to gain a military advantage at the beginning of a conflict and maintain that momentum. The rocket force figures prominently in that strategy, according to Timothy Walton, a fellow at the Hudson Institute\u2019s Center for Defense Concepts and Technology. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey talk about conducting preventive attacks \u2026 and preemptive attacks of various kinds. So, essentially conducting lots of surprise attacks to gain the initiative operationally,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>The PLA already possesses thousands of missiles and is expected to continue boosting its arsenal, he noted. <\/p>\n<p>Why are leaders in Beijing so keen on acquiring these types of systems?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey recognize it\u2019s a very effective class of weapons\u201d that are highly accurate and can target adversaries\u2019 key military nodes, Walton said.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to being based in mainland China, such systems can also be stationed at overseas outposts or onboard deployed platforms such as PLA Navy ships, he noted.<\/p>\n<p>The Pentagon in its report said: \u201cIn the near-term, the PLAN will have the capability to conduct long-range precision strikes against land targets from its submarine and surface combatants using land-attack cruise missiles, notably enhancing the PRC\u2019s global power projection capabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lewis, speaking at another panel hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said he\u2019s most concerned about adversaries\u2019 tactical hypersonic weapons.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThose are the ones that I think are the real impactful systems, because those are the ones that \u2026 have strategic implications,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cImagine a hypersonic missile swarm that can sink an aircraft carrier \u2014 that\u2019s really quite a capability.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Walton painted a bleak picture of the current situation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOn the whole, the current U.S. air-and-missile defense capabilities are relatively brittle,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s an architecture that I think could be relatively easily neutralized or paralyzed by an adversary like China.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe need to stop \u2026 just admiring the problem of defense of Guam, defense of Okinawa, defense of any other location, and actually move to resourcing the most promising capabilities and concepts to address the challenges moving forward,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>What steps might that include?<\/p>\n<p>Fielding advanced interceptors and non-kinetic systems such as high-powered lasers could be helpful, Walton said. However, \u201cthat\u2019s going to take some more time\u201d to develop and integrate the required technologies, he noted.<\/p>\n<p>In the meantime, there are other options that he considers \u201clow hanging fruit.\u201d They include dedicating more personnel to the air-and-missile defense mission, acquiring more software to improve networking, and buying \u201coff-the-shelf\u201d systems that are currently available.<\/p>\n<p>Right now, the bulk of U.S. air-and-missile defense investments go toward \u201cactive\u201d defenses such as interceptors and their supporting technologies. However, more funding for \u201cpassive\u201d defenses is needed, Walton said. <\/p>\n<p>That could include building additional infrastructure so vulnerable forces could be dispersed; hardening air bases and other critical sites; camouflage, concealment and deception; and deploying reconstitution capabilities to enable faster recovery from an attack. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnalyses after analyses have proven that [passive defenses] are very effective in terms of forcing adversaries to increase the salvo size they would need to launch, which at the very least imposes an opportunity cost at the tactical and operational level,\u201d Walton said.<\/p>\n<p>In November, the Pentagon completed its classified global posture review, but officials have said little about what changes might be afoot in the Indo-Pacific region to improve survivability.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMaybe a decent number of these projects probably should be classified or at least shouldn\u2019t be publicly released,\u201d Walton said. \u201cBut regardless, if we are acting with the haste and urgency we need, we should be seeing a lot more being done in terms of posture and new projects being launched.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall has been banging the drum about the need to address the Chinese missile threat.<br \/>PLA leaders \u201chave noticed it\u2019s quite obvious that we depend upon a small number of assets, including forward air bases, to conduct operations,\u201d he said at a recent event hosted by the Center for a New American Security. \u201cThey\u2019re fixed, they\u2019re easily targetable, and they\u2019ve built the assets to come after them. So, we have got to respond to that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hypersonics are creating new vulnerabilities and pose unique challenges for U.S. defenders, experts say.<\/p>\n<p>Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Heidi Shyu has been tasked by Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin III to come up with solutions.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve created a whole list of asymmetric ways\u201d to counter hypersonics in a cost-effective manner, she said at the Reagan National Defense Forum in December. She declined to provide details because they are classified.<\/p>\n<p>Later during a Defense Writers Group meeting in January, Shyu told reporters she had recently briefed Austin on her ideas.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe loved it and concurred,\u201d the R&#038;E chief said, noting that there will be funding for the efforts in the fiscal year 2023 budget request, which as of press time had yet to be released. Shyu will be \u201csprinting\u201d to pursue the desired capabilities, she added.<\/p>\n<p>Tom Karako, director of the missile defense project at CSIS, said countering hypersonics is a \u201cdifficult but ultimately tractable problem.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>However, \u201crelative to the legacy ballistic missile defense system, these new threats will require considerable change to be sure, to include different defense designs, new sensing and interceptor capabilities, different concepts, and doctrinal and organizational changes, as well as modified policy expectations for the defended asset list, much of which is already underway,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>The Missile Defense Agency has been examining a variety of technologies that could be part of an integrated air-and-missile defense architecture, said Stan Stafira, MDA\u2019s chief architect. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re looking at a lot of different capabilities, kinetic and non-kinetic, and also near term and far term as we look at what can we get out there quickly to the warfighter as fast as we can \u2026 and evaluating capabilities that are more long term to be able to handle this threat as it evolves in the future,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>MDA\u2019s recommended setup for countering hypersonics would include: elevated infrared sensors; integrated command, control, battle management and communications; and layered defenses with \u201ceffectors\u201d that can engage enemy systems in both the glide and terminal phases of flight.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFirst, I need to use all the sensor capabilities I have to detect that threat because \u2026 since it\u2019s maneuvering, I need to know where it\u2019s at,\u201d Stafira said. \u201cI need to be able to pass that data to the right guys to be able to engage it. And then I need to have effectors out there to be able to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Effectors could include kinetic \u201chit-to-kill\u201d interceptors, directed energy weapons such as lasers and high-powered microwaves, or other tools like blast fragmentation warheads that could detonate in the vicinity of the target and disrupt it.<\/p>\n<p>MDA is developing a space-based prototype of hypersonic ballistic tracking sensors that are slated to be launched in 2023. That capability is expected to provide high quality fire-control data that could be passed down to weapon systems for target engagement.<\/p>\n<p>Experts emphasize the importance of having a layered defense, especially against hypersonics.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe need to be able to engage that threat throughout its phases of flight,\u201d Stafira said.<\/p>\n<p>MDA is pursuing a glide phase interceptor that could take out targets at longer ranges. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency also has a program underway known as Glide Breaker that has a similar aim.<\/p>\n<p>If missiles can\u2019t be neutralized in their glide phase, terminal phase interceptor capabilities such as ship-based Standard Missile-6 systems could be employed, Stafira said. The Pentagon plans to make improvements to the technology with the sea-based terminal program, he noted.<\/p>\n<p>The missile defense architecture needs to be flexible and capable of dealing with a wide range of threats including ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and hypersonics. Some modifications to the existing command, control, battle management and communication system, or C2BMC, will be needed, he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re working with the department as we go forward \u2026 to make sure that we\u2019re looking at that whole spectrum,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>A variety of interceptors, directed energy systems, sensors and other capabilities could be in the mix. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re looking at all that stuff to see what makes the best sense as part of the architecture,\u201d Stafira said. \u201cWe want to be able to \u2026 take any of that stuff and be able to plug it into the architecture to be able to handle the threat in layers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Some of the capabilities under consideration will take years to deliver, noted Kelley Sayler, analyst for advanced technology and global security at the Congressional Research Service. <\/p>\n<p>The glide phase interceptor program is intended to deliver capability by the mid- to late-2020s, according to Sayler. Directed energy systems might not be available until 2030 or \u201cpotentially much later than that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In the meantime, the Pentagon needs to accelerate its own offensive hypersonic weapons programs \u2014 which include air-, land- and sea-based systems \u2014 and build the platforms in large quantities, Lewis said. <\/p>\n<p>The U.S. military has not yet fielded any of the hypersonics it\u2019s working on, although it hopes to begin doing so in 2023. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe best defense may in fact be a strong offense, and we can\u2019t lose sight of that. These two sides of the coin are very, very much coupled,\u201d Lewis said. \u201cBy developing our own offensive systems, that will give us the knowledge that we need to defend against them. But also, it is possible that at the end of the day the only [effective] defense we have is taking out a hypersonic launch system or launch capability with our own hypersonic weapon system.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\n                                <strong class=\"font-color-01 font-size-02\">Topics:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationaldefensemagazine.org\/articles?Topic={74F3232A-4273-46EF-893B-9BCA3448813A}\">Missile Defense<\/a>\n                            <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>U.S. Challenged to Defend Against Chinese Missiles  3\/7\/2022 By Jon\u00a0Harper    iStock illustration China\u2019s inventory of advanced missiles would be one of<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1363850","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1363850","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1363850"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1363850\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1363850"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1363850"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1363850"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}