Thread by @JoshJPhilipp

Thread:

China may be putting anti-satellite, EMP weapons on its ships.

My take on this: theepochtimes.com/china-may-be-a…

The Chinese regime may be placing anti-satellite weapons on its icebreaker ships, according to satellite images discovered by retired Indian Army Col. Vinayak Bhat. The images show emplacements on the ships that resemble anti-satellite weapons seen on Chinese military bases. (1)

Bhat had previously exposed satellite imagery of secret anti-satellite weapons bases in China, which included testing facilities for EMP weapons. The facilities, which appear to include tracking equipment, are stationed in buildings with sliding roofs. (2) theepochtimes.com/as-china-talks…

The satellite images of the alleged weapons systems have a similar appearance. Bhat said that China was testing EMP generators on its naval ships to work as anti-satellite (ASAT) weapons. He wrote they are similar to the EMP generators he discovered previously in Xinjiang. (3)

Bhat included images of the People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) Type 272, Haibing 722, and Haibing 723 icebreakers. (4)

https://twitter.com/rajfortyseven/status/1118835631944290304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

According to Jane’s Defense Weekly, the Chinese regime announced it was testing a prototype laser weapon for the PLAN on April 5. Several images of the weapons were released on Chinese media. (5) janes.com/article/87820/…

Bhat suggest that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has stepped up its deployment of these weapons. He wrote, “Satellite imagery accessed by ThePrint shows China has indeed moved on to testing and weaponizing its naval platforms for space denial.” (6) theprint.in/defence/china-…

It appears the CCP’s ships of choice for these weapons are icebreakers, and sent two to its Huludao Naval Test and Research Base. They have been “observed conducting tests and trials for the PLAN’s latest electronic equipment, especially during the summer months.” (7)

The claims are plausible, according to Robert J. Bunker, an adjunct research professor at the Strategic Studies Institute of the U.S. Army War College. (8)

Bunker said there are advantages using nuclear-powered icebreakers: “First, it would have the higher electrical power generation needed to better utilize EMP/ASAT weaponry. Second, it’s only an icebreaker—not much of a ‘military threat’ from a narrative perspective.” (9)

He also noted that if a nuclear-powered ship such as these icebreakers is attacked with a normal weapon, “the attack is considered a nuclear strike, in a sense.” (10)

Because of this, it’s less likely that other nations would attack the CCP’s icebreakers, unless it justified the seriousness of the consequences. Bunker said it “creates a really high deterrent value to attacking a nuclear-powered icebreaker using EMP/ASAT weaponry.” (11)

Bunker also noted Chinese reports that its icebreakers could be, as South China Morning Post said, a “stepping stone to building nuclear aircraft carriers.” It’s possible that the CCP is using the icebreakers to experiment with various technologies for regular warships. (12)

President Trump signed an executive order to protect U.S. critical infrastructure from EMP attacks. It calls on secretaries of various departments to “develop a plan to mitigate the effects of EMPs on the vulnerable priority critical infrastructure.” (13) theepochtimes.com/president-trum…

Included in the executive order is a directive for the Department of Defense to focus on ways to prevent EMP attacks, and on methods to defend against them. (14)

/end/ of thread.

Thanks to @rajfortyseven for finding this. He does some great work with satellite image analysis.

I should have also noted why this is so serious. Weapons like this are part of the CCP's "Assassin's Mace/Trump Card" strategy. This aims specifically to disable key strengths of the US military—for war with the United States. theepochtimes.com/chinese-genera…