September 30, 2004 :: Spacewar.com :: News
Taiwanese Defense Minister Lee Jye said today that their Communist neighbor to the North is likely to have a staggering 800 ballistic missiles aimed at Taiwan before the end of 2006. He noted, while speaking to a defense committee about a requested military budget, that China already has 600 short range missiles mostly within range of the small island nation.
Lee is quoted as saying that “The number of Dong Feng-11 and Dong Feng-15 ballistic missiles is expected to rise to 800 before the end of 2006.” The DF-11 is also know as the CSS-7; the DF-15 as the CSS-6.
Lee’s estimate is actually less than that put forward by Taiwanese vice president Annette Lu, who recently said that China’s SRBMs targeting Taiwan would reach 800 by 2005.
Lee also spoke of some 200 additional cruise missiles which China may fire during a potential attack, which he characterized as consisting of five waves, lasting a total of ten hours.
“Given (Taiwan’s) missile defensive capabilities, we are hardly able to cope with the threat.” (Article)
» More stories on: China, Taiwan
» Missile details: CSS-6, CSS-7 Mod 2, CSS-7
