Chieh-Chung noted that Taiwan’s long-range early warning radar in Leshan (樂山), Hsinchu, has a detection radius exceeding 3,000 kilometers, reaching Inner Mongolia. The launch site this time is within 1,500 kilometers of Leshan, allowing our radar to capture and immediately identify the missile launch location. However, determining whether the missile is a Julang-2 or Julang-3, or whether the submarine was surfaced or submerged, is beyond our capabilities and likely derived from intelligence exchanges.

He stated that although various countries have complained about China’s late notification, the movement of the “Yuanwang" telemetry ship to the South Pacific and China’s announcement of dangerous waters made it clear that the PLA was preparing for a test launch. The U.S. could use satellites and other tools to enhance surveillance of potential launch sites, possibly allowing them to ascertain whether the submarine was surfaced or submerged at the time.

Chieh-Chung also pointed out that if the Julang-3 were launched from the Bohai Sea and traveled northeast over the Arctic, it could reach the entire U.S.; launching from the South China Sea would not reach the U.S. East Coast. With a meeting between Xi and Trump scheduled for September, Beijing likely does not want to overly provoke President Trump, potentially straining the recently eased relations.

/https://udn.com/news/story/10930/9624237