Chapter 1188 Anti-missile Threat

It’s similar to Chang Haonan’s previous estimate.

The Dongfeng 3A model is really not very sensitive.

Although some countries expressed diplomatic concerns about the test, anyone with a discerning eye could see that it was pure verbal gymnastics and did not really attract any extra attention.

Only Japan stepped out to launch a relatively serious protest.

Of course, this is not difficult to understand.

After all, they were really within the range of the DF-3A.

However, Chang Haonan is not really a genius after all.

Some things below the surface were beyond his expectations.

……

About two hours after the successful launch test.

Pentagon.

U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff General John Jumper and Air Force Secretary Pete Teeter, who were woken up from their sleep by their assistant, walked into the office of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld together.

Although there have been calls for the latter's resignation in the United States due to the quagmire of two wars, he is still one of the most powerful defense ministers thanks to the support of the White House and some financial groups, as well as his excellent political skills.

He even interfered in the work of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to a considerable extent.

"Please sit down first."

Seeing two people walk into the office, the Defense Minister stretched out his hand and gestured to the two chairs opposite the desk.

However, before the two of them sat down, he picked up a document in front of him, turned it 180 degrees, and pushed it to the other side of the desk:

"A few hours ago, the Chinese side informed us of a high-altitude ballistic missile test in accordance with relevant agreements."

The US military does not have a separate military branch like the Strategic Rocket Force or the Second Artillery Force. Except for nuclear submarines, all of its strategic forces are incorporated into the Air Force.

Therefore, only two people were present today.

Moreover, this is also the usual style of Defense Minister La.

Try to avoid any subordinate from being exposed to the overall picture of the work, so as to ensure that all tasks must be carried out with you as the center.

Jiang Po, who was relatively senior, had long been accustomed to this. He only frowned slightly after hearing the defense minister's words:

"Is it the long-range missile we are already familiar with? Or is there a new improved model?"

As he spoke, he picked up the report in front of him.

Then there was a pause:

"Dongfeng 3?"

His first reaction was that the report was wrong.

"It's either Dongfeng 31 or Dongfeng 3..."

Rumsfeld took off his glasses and wiped them gently with a cloth:

"In theory, this model can carry a nuclear warhead, so it is also within the scope of the test launch notification."

Jiang Po looked at the contents on the paper, then looked up at his leader.

Although he didn't speak, the meaning in his eyes was very clear -

Are you serious?

"If I remember correctly, the range of this model is less than 4000 kilometers, and the circular error probability is more than 300 meters. It is hard to regard it as a threat..."

Before he could finish his words, Rumsfeld interrupted him:

"However, apart from what they informed us, we knew almost nothing about the test launch and did not even receive any warning."

Jiang Po used a lot of effort to resist the urge to look at him like a fool.

In fact, not only him, but the entire US military has almost reached the point of losing patience with this amateur minister who only knows how to mess around. But now is not the time to show your cards.

So Jiang Po suppressed his anger and explained:

"Mr. Minister, the current strategic early warning system is only effective over North America. This missile does not have a long range and has a high trajectory. The distance from launch to landing is only a few hundred kilometers, and it may even be on the other side of the earth..."

"Of course I know……"

Rumsfeld nodded slowly, then asked mysteriously:

“But is it possible to change this situation?”

After he finished speaking, he paused for a moment and then added:

"Although their missiles are unlikely to threaten our homeland at present, it is still a cause for concern for several allies in East Asia... And taking a step back, we still have troops deployed in East Asia and Central Asia, and we cannot let them always be under the shadow of missile attacks."

I must say that the Defense Minister is extremely good at playing word games.

By simply adjusting the way of description, he put himself in the position of a weak, pitiful and helpless victim.

But he never mentioned why he wanted to build a circle of military bases around China.

But now, Jiang Po understood what the other party meant:

"You know, the construction efficiency of the theater missile defense system (TMD) lags far behind that of the national missile defense system (NMD), so at present we can only provide terminal defense forces such as Patriot PAC3 for overseas troops and allies. It is difficult to provide early warning and interception in the early and mid-stages of missile launch..."

This sentence is of course an answer to the question, but it also secretly expresses dissatisfaction.

After Rumsfeld came to power, he diverted a lot of research and development funds from military projects in the name of the war on terror.

Many models that were close to entering service were even directly cancelled and replaced with some equipment that seemed incomprehensible to insiders.

The Defense Minister also knew that he was in the wrong in this matter, but he still frowned and seemed a little unhappy.

Fortunately, at this time, Pete Tite, who had been silent, suddenly spoke:

"Mr. Defense Minister, I have an idea..."

The Secretary of the Air Force is a pure civilian. In addition, Teeter was appointed temporarily after his predecessor James Roach resigned due to the aerial refueling tanker selection scandal, so he does not actually know the specific situation.

However, he knew his leader very well.

The other party took such a long detour, obviously he already had an idea in his mind, but he didn't want to say it out loud, so he wanted to find someone else to say it:

"Can we take this opportunity to help our allies build a preliminary missile early warning system within the first island chain?"

Sure enough, upon hearing this suggestion, Rumsfeld's expression quickly changed from gloomy to bright:

"I think this is a very responsible proposal out of our obligation to protect our allies and our overseas troops."

In the power structure of the US military, although the Air Force Chief of Staff has a high position, his decision-making level is actually very low.

Looking at the two people next to him singing in unison and cooperating with each other in perfect harmony, Jiang Po knew that it would be useless for him to sing a different tune now.

We can only start to think about how to implement it specifically.

Besides, he was happy to take this opportunity to ask for more funds:

"Last year, we sold two AN/FPS-115 "Pave Paws" large phased array radars, which caused a big disturbance... Therefore, it may be difficult to operate a new large fixed early warning radar in the first island chain. Moreover, it is completely within the coverage of the Chinese firepower, which is not tactically appropriate..."

"In comparison, the mobile land-based AN/TPY-2 and sea-based SBX radars may be better choices... Especially the former can be quickly deployed by transport aircraft after completion, leaving China with a shorter reaction time... However, the entire THAAD system has entered the adjustment phase since last year. To ensure the progress of research and development, I am afraid that more funds will be needed..."

Seeing that he kept talking about funding, Rumsfeld's eyes changed slightly:

"I will submit a proposal to the White House to increase investment in this area in the next fiscal year..."

"But until the THAAD system is developed, we need a countermeasure that can be put into use immediately."

Jiang Po got what he wanted and stopped beating around the bush:

"In this case...the SBX radar is currently undergoing sea trials in the Gulf of Mexico and can be deployed there ahead of time after the trials are completed."

"In addition, South Korea and Japan are planning to build a batch of new Aegis destroyers. I think they can also be asked to take on some anti-missile interception missions..."