China is deviating from its minimal nuclear deterrence strategy, the US State Department charged on Monday, after a report that Beijing had recently tested a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile.
“We are deeply concerned about the rapid expansion of the PRC’s [People’s Republic of China’s] nuclear capabilities, including its development of novel delivery systems,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said at a briefing about a Financial Times report on Saturday that China had launched a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile in August.