The SS-24 can carry up to 10 nuclear warheads, each of which is five times the size of the first atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, and can put them within 200 meters of a target more than 6,000 nautical miles away. There is a reason why China is building Soviet-style weaponry. The Chinese apparently are getting help from former Soviet sources. The November 16 New York Times reported the existence of a Chinese military strategy book, published this year, which identifies the United States as China's principal future military adversary. Mr. President, all Americans sincerely hope that by the end of this decade, if not sooner, China will be both prosperous and democratic.
China is well on the road to prosperity.
However, there is no guarantee that democracy in China will occur. China did, in fact, first explode a nuclear weapon in 1964 but its delivery systems are 1960's vintage at best. Therefore, I have written to the distinguished chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Pell, and the distinguished ranking member, Senator Helms, asking that, as a matter of high priority, the committee hold extensive hearing as soon as Congress reconvenes on Chinese military capabilities and their implications for arms control. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that articles from the Los Angeles Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Times, and New York Times, as well as my letter to the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, be printed in the Record. Including Better ICBM's, To Deliver the Warheads, They Believe.