China has become the second country in the world to test a hypersonic missile vehicle, the Pentagon confirmed Thursday.
"We're aware of the test of the hypersonic vehicle but we are not commenting on it," said Lieutenant Colonel Jeff Pool, a Pentagon spokesperson.
A Chinese vehicle, dubbed the WU-14, is believed to have conducted a test flight on 9 January at Mach 10, 10 times the speed of sound. This hypersonic capability would allow the People's Liberation Army to rapidly strike targets anywhere around the world.
Though official sources did not confirm or deny the test, a defence ministry information officer told state media: "China's planned domestic scientific research and experiments are normal and are not aimed at any country or target."
"While round after round of defence cuts have knocked America's technological advantage on its back, the Chinese and other competitor nations push toward military parity with the United States; in some cases, as in this one, they appear to be leaping ahead of us," three US Republican lawmakers said in a statement about China's hypersonic capabilities.
"This situation does nothing to support peaceful coexistence in the Pacific."
The US spent 1.2 billion yuan ($200 million) in 2013 on three hypersonic projects, conducting a number of test flights.
[Image: Darpa Falcon Project]
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