US: China Has Over 600 Nuclear Warheads... Expected to Exceed 1,000 by 2030

The U.S. Department of Defense has assessed that China is rapidly expanding its military capabilities, including nuclear armament, with over 600 nuclear warheads.

On the 18th (local time), the Department of Defense released the '2024 China Military Power Report,' stating that China has more than 600 nuclear warheads operational by mid-2024. This represents an increase of about 100 warheads compared to last year's report, which specified over 500 warheads as of May 2023. Additionally, the Department of Defense estimates that China will possess more than 1,000 nuclear warheads by 2030 and will continue to expand its nuclear forces at least until 2035.

Along with this, the Department of Defense judged that China possesses the world's most advanced hypersonic missiles and has made progress in developing conventional and nuclear-armed hypersonic missiles over the past 20 years. Furthermore, it assessed that modernization is underway across all domains of the Chinese military, including the Army demonstrating long-range firepower capabilities. The Air Force is rapidly approaching U.S. levels in areas such as unmanned aerial system modernization.

However, the report noted that widespread corruption among senior leadership within the Chinese military last year may have hindered progress toward the military's modernization goals. The Department of Defense observed that corruption issues were found throughout all parts of the Chinese military and may have shaken the Chinese regime's trust in senior military officials.

Additionally, if the Chinese military achieves its modernization goals by 2027, it is projected that the Chinese military could become a more useful military tool for the Chinese Communist Party's efforts toward Taiwan unification.

Currently, the U.S. Department of Defense estimates that China spends 40 to 90% more than its officially announced defense budget. Accordingly, the 2024 defense expenditure is estimated to be between $330 billion and $450 billion (approximately 480 trillion to 654 trillion KRW).