CatoCooper13
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China is adding to its arsenal of ballistic missiles as tensions on the Korean peninsula continue to simmer, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.
Beijing's expansion of its missile arsenal comes as North Korea refuses to capitulate to US demands that it abandon its nuclear weapons research program.
Furthermore, Japan's willingness to develop a missile defence shield in cooperation with Washington has added to Chinese fears of being left behind in a regional arms race, the Herald reported.
A US official who briefed Australian defence analysts late last month, JD Crouch, said China was deploying "large numbers of shorter-range systems and they are deploying large numbers of longer-range systems that could target the United States or any other place"
The Herald said the statement appeared in a partial transcript of the briefing.
It reported China has 200 long-range intercontinental ballistic missiles and 400 shorter-range weapons, most of which are aimed at Taiwan.
©AAP 2003
Beijing's expansion of its missile arsenal comes as North Korea refuses to capitulate to US demands that it abandon its nuclear weapons research program.
Furthermore, Japan's willingness to develop a missile defence shield in cooperation with Washington has added to Chinese fears of being left behind in a regional arms race, the Herald reported.
A US official who briefed Australian defence analysts late last month, JD Crouch, said China was deploying "large numbers of shorter-range systems and they are deploying large numbers of longer-range systems that could target the United States or any other place"
The Herald said the statement appeared in a partial transcript of the briefing.
It reported China has 200 long-range intercontinental ballistic missiles and 400 shorter-range weapons, most of which are aimed at Taiwan.
©AAP 2003