China tested hypersonic missile in August, says FT report

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China has tested a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile that circled the globe before reaching its target, the Financial Times has reported.

According to the FT report, the test was conducted in August and has caught the US security establishment by surprise. The missile, whose launch was kept a secret by China, however, missed its target by around 24 miles, the report said. The missile circled the globe before speeding towards its target, demonstrating an advanced space capability.

“Five people familiar with the test said the Chinese military launched a rocket that carried a hypersonic glide vehicle which flew through low-orbit space before cruising down towards its target,” the FT report said, adding that the test showed that China had made astounding progress on hypersonic weapons and was far more advanced than US officials realised.

Several countries, including the US, Russia and China, are developing hypersonic missiles which travel at a speed five times that of sound. Though they are slower than a ballistic missile, they are harder to intercept as they do not follow the parabolic trajectory of a ballistic missile and can be manoeuvred.

Though there was no official reaction from the US or Indian government to the report, strategic experts in India believe more information is needed to start getting worried about the development.

“Missile development is an ongoing process. From subsonic to supersonic to hypersonic. If China has developed one, it is not something happening for the first time. So many countries have it. Even we have hypersonic missiles. There is no need to get hyper about it. First, you have to test it, then operationalise it. Also when a missile travels at such a high speed, trajectory correction is not that simple. Without knowing the character of the missile, such as what load it can carry, there is no need to be too worried,” said G Balachandran, former consulting fellow at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analysis.

According to the FT report, two people familiar with the Chinese test said the weapon could, in theory, fly over the south pole. “That would pose a big challenge for the US military because its missiles defence systems are focused on the northern polar route, the report said.

The report said that China generally announces the launch of Long March rockets — the type used to launch the hypersonic glide vehicle into orbit — but it conspicuously concealed the August launch.

The developments come in the backdrop of growing US-China rivalry, Chinese pressure on Taiwan, and China’s year-long standoff with Indian forces in eastern Ladakh.

According to the FT, the Pentagon did not comment on the report but expressed concern about China. “We have made clear our concerns about the military capabilities China continues to pursue, capabilities that only increase tensions in the region and beyond. That is one reason why we hold China as our number one pacing challenge,” FT quoted Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby as saying.

It said the Chinese embassy too declined to comment on the test, but Liu Pengyu, spokesperson, said China always pursued a military policy that was “defensive in nature” and its military development did not target any country.

“We don’t have a global strategy and plans of military operations like the US does. And we are not at all interested in having an arms race with other countries,” FT quoted Liu as saying. “In contrast, the US has in recent years been fabricating excuses like ‘the China threat’ to justify its arms expansion and development of hypersonic weapons. This has directly intensified the arms race in this category and severely undermined global strategic stability,” it quoted him as saying.

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