China's New Stealth Bomber Could Bring Hawaii Into Striking Distance
China is developing a stealth bomber that would be capable of striking parts of the United States, a troubling prospect given the rising tensions between the two nations.
The H-20 bomber, which has been on the radar of the United States for months now, is expected to have a 5,280-mile striking range, putting Hawaii and the U.S. territory of Guam within its reach.
The U.S. Defense Department’s 2020 China Military Power Report gives insight into China’s aviation ambitions.
“A number of reports suggest the new bomber, likely named the H-20, could debut sometime in the next decade with the following features: a stealthy design, employing many fifth-generation technologies; a likely range of at least 8,500 km; a payload of at least 10 metric tons; and a capability to employ both conventional and nuclear weaponry,” the DoD said in August.
A new report from the Royal United Services Institute, a United Kingdom-based think tank, makes it clear that the bomber would have significant power, according to the South China Morning Post.
“Armed with nuclear and conventional stand-off missiles, the H-20 would represent a major break from previous People’s Liberation Army Air Force doctrine and equipment development practice,” said the RUSI report, released in late October.
This is a major change for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, which currently is only truly able to defend against and attack nations in Asia and islands in the Pacific Ocean, such as the Philippines and Japan.
“The H-20, by contrast, would give China a truly intercontinental power-projection capability,” the report said.
China’s H-20 stealth bomber will give PLA ‘truly intercontinental’ strike capacity, says report https://t.co/07icYQH4nx
— SCMP News (@SCMPNews) November 26, 2020
This news comes as the Pentagon has raised concerns about China’s growing military power and how it is quickly becoming the nation’s largest adversary.
The report from the DOD makes it clear the communist juggernaut wants to best the United States in military prowess by 2049.
“Two decades later, the PLA’s objective is to become a ‘world-class’ military by the end of 2049 — a goal first announced by General Secretary Xi Jinping in 2017,” it said. “Although the CCP has not defined what a ‘world-class’ military means, within the context of the PRC’s national strategy it is likely that Beijing will seek to develop a military by mid-century that is equal to — or in some cases superior to — the U.S. military, or that of any other great power that the PRC views as a threat.”
Tensions between the United States and China have soured since March, mostly because of the global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic that originated there, the intense scrutiny over Uyghur Muslims being placed in forced labor camps, and the government’s crackdown on freedom protests in Hong Kong.
As a result, the U.S. government sanctioned the communist nation by enacting the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act and the Hong Kong Autonomy Act. The Trump administration also announced sanctions on Chinese companies that use slave labor.
China is poised to become the nation’s greatest enemy since the Soviet Union, so military developments such as a new stealth bomber should not be taken lightly.
While President Donald Trump has taken a tough approach to China after trying to negotiate trade deals with the global rival, it is unclear how Democrat Joe Biden’s administration would respond to the growing threat.
China plays an integral role in the global economy, so the United States needs the right leaders to navigate this rocky chapter in foreign policy.
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