A report of the Washington-based think tank the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) disclosed in February that China is building at least 16 silos in the missile training area west of Wuhai in Inner Mongolia. The US Defence Department said these are probably to accommodate the DF-41 and DF-31AG missiles that have a range of 10,000km to 14,000km (6,200 to 8,700 miles). China’s DF-41 missiles can carry multiple nuclear warheads and can be fired from a silo-based platform or a road- or rail-based mobile launcher. The report said new underground silos are located in the centre of the Jilantai training base, within a total area of 200 sq km, and are spaced between 2.2km and 4.4km apart so that no two of them can be destroyed in a single nuclear attack. The report also said satellite images of the Chinese training base showed that two drive-through tunnels had been built, with enough space to accommodate mobile missile launchers – meaning they could be kept hidden. Weapon Station, a military analysis account on social network WeChat, said the new facilities were built for the PLA Rocket Force’s new DF-41 brigade under the Western Theatre Command.
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