Pentagon says China refitting missiles to hit Okinawa

China is modifying short-range mobile missiles to target U.S. forces in Okinawa and is sharply increasing the number of missiles aimed at Taiwan, according to the Pentagon’s latest annual report on Chinese military power.

“Beijing has greatly expanded its arsenal of increasingly accurate and lethal ballistic missiles and long-range strike aircraft that are ready for immediate application should the [Peoples Liberation Army] be called upon to conduct war before its modernization aspirations are fully realized,” according to the report released yesterday.

The Chinese are working on a medium-range missile that will give Beijing the ability to launch attacks against the 25,000 U.S. troops deployed on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa. The new missiles also will be able to hit Taiwan from bases farther inland from the Chinese coast, the report said.

Currently, all of China’s short-range CSS-7 and CSS-6 missiles are deployed in the Nanjing military region, located across the Taiwan Strait from China.

The new CSS-6s will “employ satellite-aided navigation to enable attacks against both Okinawa and Taiwan.”

China now has deployed 450 short-range missiles and the force will grow by more than 75 missiles a year, the report said.

Last year’s report said China had 350 CSS-6 and CSS-7 missiles within striking range of Taiwan and that the Chinese military was adding 50 a year.

The missiles pose “a growing and significant challenge … to U.S. forces in the western Pacific, as well as to allies and friends, including Taiwan.”

Regarding the threat to Taiwan, the report states that China could use “decapitation” attacks against the island using missiles, aircraft or an amphibious assault.

“China’s efforts to develop coercive military options present challenges not only to Taiwan, but also to other countries in the region such as the Philippines and Japan,” the report said.

China also is beefing up its long-range nuclear missiles.

Along with building new intercontinental ballistic missiles, China may abandon its pledge not to be the first to use nuclear arms in a conflict. Beijing is “reconsidering” how it would use nuclear weapons “against U.S. forces in the region,” the report said.

The report also warns that China is building up its “information warfare” forces in preparation for a conflict over Taiwan, which President Bush has vowed to defend from Chinese attack.

Beijing has adopted a new strategy of what Beijing military planners call “assassin’s mace” arms — advanced weapons designed for use against U.S. forces.

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