Chinese General Warns US of Nuclear Risk
 

A senior Chinese general has warned that his country could destroy hundreds of American cities with nuclear weapons if the two nations clashed over Taiwan.

Major general Zhu Chenghu, a dean at the National Defence University, said he was expressing a private opinion, but his comments, the most inflammatory by a senior government official in 10 years, will fuel growing concerns in Washington about the rise of China.

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Speaking at a lecture arranged by the foreign ministry and attended by several foreign correspondents on Thursday, Mr Zhu said China was prepared to initiate non-conventional warfare over Taiwan. "War logic dictates that a weaker power needs to use maximum efforts to defeat a stronger rival," he was reported as saying by the New York Times.

"If the Americans draw their missiles and position-guided ammunition on to the target zone on China's territory, I think we will have to respond with nuclear weapons."

Echoing threats last made in 1995, Mr Zhu, who has a reputation as a hawk in Chinese military circles, said his country was ready to sustain heavy casualties in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and other heavily populated areas.

"We Chinese will prepare ourselves for the destruction of all of the cities east of Xian," he said. "Of course, the Americans will have to be prepared that hundreds of cities will be destroyed by the Chinese."

Although Mr Zhu said war was unlikely, his proposal that China should adopt a first-strike nuclear option against the US will alarm the Pentagon.

China tested its first atomic bomb in 1964, but it claims that its arsenal of nuclear weapons is the smallest among the five nations on the UN security council.

According to a recent article in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, China has only 18 intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of delivering a nuclear warhead to the US mainland. Most sit in their silos unarmed.

However, US intelligence predicts that over the next 15 years, China will expand its IBM force to 75-100 strategic nuclear warheads targeted primarily at the US. They will be mounted on a new mobile solid-fuel rocket, the Dong Feng-31, and, possibly, miniaturised for launch from China's submarine fleet.

The US defence secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, recently expressed concern about Beijing's growing military power. Such strategic fears come at a time of rising Sino-American tensions over the bilateral trade deficit and competition for global energy resources.

The Chinese government refused to comment on Mr Zhu's statement, but in recent weeks the state-run media has carried several articles rebutting US claims about a military build-up. Earlier this month, Major General Ding Jiye, head of the finance office of the People's Liberation Army, said the 12.6% rise in defence spending this year was in line with economic growth and was mainly used to improve the living conditions of soldiers.

The China Daily, the English-language paper aimed at an overseas audience, focused on the planned reduction of 200,000 military personnel from the 2.5 million-strong army by the end of this year.

Analysts say China has learned from the collapse of the Soviet Union that it would be economic suicide to attempt an arms race with the US.

But there are still risks of a clash over Taiwan, a self-governing island that China considers part of its territory and the US has vowed to protect.

The president of the European commission, José Manuel Barroso, urged his hosts yesterday to resume dialogue with Taiwan before 2008.

"This will also greatly advance China's international standing and reputation as a global player with a particular responsibility for peace and security in east Asia," said Mr Barroso, who was on his first official trip to China.

Disturbing, honestly it's bound to happen, The American Ego must fall at some point.

I hope I'm not around when that day comes... the world will be a different place.

What a fucking moron.

Who in their right mind would suggest nuclear war with America (or with anyone, for that matter)? You've got to be completely batty.

Maybe we have too many people.

Maybe if U.S dosn't go into everyone else businese that won't happen.

Could destroy hundreds of US cities? Try their own country as well. Nukes would get fired back to turn china into a smoldering crater. The whole area would be irradiated. Millions of non military people would be killed on both sides because of some island. It would cripple or at least hurt both countries.

Zhu Chenghu is a fucking moronic war monger. A Island isnt something worth losing millions of civilian lives over.

Still, using a nuke is a little too much.

it's more like a threat than anything else, I think we all can tell. But what if China is voved to protect Iraq in all cost from US? I wonder what the US would do.

Well, I honestly doubt China is "voved" to protect Iraq. If that day comes where two of the most powerful countries in the world clash... GG Earth.

Something tells me that even if there's nuclear war, it will just be some good entertainment on TV, just like 9/11. Won't affect me personally.

I'm probably not gonna be in the US when this day comes. Hopefully I'll have died or moved away.

Moving out of the States won't protect you against any kind of nuclear war. China or US will start it, then the other will fight back, then we will get dragged in because we're your friends but when it comes to us wanting help Bush wants nothing to do with it, then the UN will want a vote, and France will veto any kind of war, have all their nuclear power stations nuked into the next millenium, have thier population turned into walking, talking, arrogant scum of the earth with one radioactive difference, and then something else will happen...like maybe Australia will retort by saying: "Double-u Tee Eff mate?"...:p

I've watched that animation too many times...

Sounds pretty accurate, sadly x.x

Let's consider the positive possibilities? We could not have a nuclear war. No one is dumb enough to care about Taiwan more than billions* (not millions) of people.

like that guy said its bound to happen one of these days i also hope i am not around when it happends it would be catastrofic(horrible) i say screw the chinese if they nuke us will just have to nuke them back the chinese dosent know who there screwin with

Agreed. But I don't think it's actually Taiwan that's the problem. It's more the ego's of the people for their respective nations. Both the Chinese and Americans are very proud of their nations. Now patriotism is one thing, but a lot of what we see today isn't merely patriotism, it's idiotic irrationality in the name of patriotism. There has been an influx of this type of behavior in America since 9/11. Now, if America were to act on their claim that they would "protect" Taiwan, then I will not be surprised to see an increase of that same irrational behavior in China. America would be blatantly defying something that the Chinese government wishes. Now what does America do when other countries defy us? We wage war on them, or rename our fries. China would only be following America's example by declaring war on us. And the General is correct on one point -- China most probably can not win a conventional war against the U.S., but a nuclear war would be a whole different ballgame -- if they can't win it, it would certainly even the playing field. Yes, America has 1000s of Nukes, but the numbers aren't really to much of our advantage after a while. China does have the firepower to cause some major damage. So, Taiwan, no. Nobody is going to risk billions of lives over that. But when egos get in the way, people will most certainly be willing to put others in the path of harm for that.

That will honestly be a sad day. The day nuclear war breaks out between two of the worlds strongest millitaries, you're possibly looking at the end of life as we know it. If they do decide to nuke us, I certainly hope we look for every alternative that we can before making the same mistake and launching nukes at them. Of course, if there's no alternative then what can you do. I hope our leaders are smarter than that, but that's somewhat doubtful.

u do have a point

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!

Welcome to Zelaron.

I wonder if they would lock all the Chinese up when that happen, just like in pearl habor to the japanese. "packing"

Comon now, we have 1/6 of world population just within China, I wonder how many of us are spread all over the world.