China’s Rapid Advances in Satellite Technology Strengthens ‘Kill Chain’ for ‘Carrier Killer’ Missiles
Commentary
The Chinese spy balloon allowed to traverse the United States may have gathered some useful intel, or as Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) stated in a TV interview, it may have been “redundant.” Regardless, it was a further demonstration of the Biden administration’s weakness in dealing with China.
But the threat posed by balloons pales in comparison to the huge strides China has been making in both the number and sophistication of the satellites it is launching at an ever-accelerating rate.
Indeed, in 2022, China made 62 successful launches, breaking its 2021 record of 55 launches. And while the United States had 72 successful launches in 2022, most of those were commercial, with only 30 being military in nature versus China’s 45 military-related launches. And it must be noted that with China’s dual commercial/military use industrial policy, any “commercial” satellite could also be at the beck and call of the Chinese communist military….