I remember very vividly Secretary Kissinger making that statement. He almost ridiculed and disdainfully dismissed those who said that China could pose a military threat to the United States at any time in the next two decades. That is a direct quote from the Firing Line transcript. My how time flies, because now we find, less than a year later, that all but five of the Chinese nuclear missiles are aimed and directed at the United States and, in fact, they do pose a threat. According to this article in the Washington Times, China targets nukes at the United States, according to a CIA report that was recently released.
China now appears to pose a very real threat to the United States.
This article noted that 13 of China's 18 long-range strategic missiles with ranges exceeding 8,000 miles and have single nuclear warheads are aimed at the United States. These missiles are in addition to China's growing arsenal of other weapons that can now reach the United States, many of which are mentioned in this article regarding the CIA report. Like those of us in the Senate, Dr. Kissinger may not have known that two U.S. companies, Loral Space and Communications and Hughes Electronic, illegally gave China space expertise during cooperation on a commercial satellite launch which could be used to develop an accurate launch and guidance system for ICBMs. I am sure Dr. Kissinger would not have foreseen that this administration, in the middle of investigating this illegal transfer, would allow Loral to launch another satellite on a Chinese rocket and provide them the same expertise at issue in the criminal case. The New York Times ran a follow-up article today providing some insight into this administration's policy on China and the transfer of sensitive technology.