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Quote: [So much nonsense from this author.

China would have to build 1,000 strategic nukes and their respective delivery systems to effectively do as the author suggests.

They only have about 50-100 that can reach the US today. Against 1,500 we have ready to launch at them.

And nukes are the price of an Aircraft Carrier. Or US airfield. Or SSN etc.]

The Chinese likely have thousands of nukes. They’ve certainly been spending large sums of money on their military that, when adjusted for salary differences (8:1), exceed US amounts.

Yes, they say they’ve only got hundreds. But why would they tell the truth? They’re certainly not averse to lying, in order to lull their perceived adversaries into complacency. Heck, they played dead while North Korean forces were running pell mell for the Chinese border after MacArthur’s landing at Inchon, and launched a surprise attack on US forces while the latter was attempting administer the coup de grace to the North Korean People’s Army.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China_and_weapons_of_mass_destruction
http://www.u3o8.biz/s/MarketCommentary.asp?ReportID=754347&_Title=10-Top-Uranium-producing-Countries

Quote: [In 2004, China stated that “among the nuclear-weapon states, China ... possesses the smallest nuclear arsenal,” implying China has fewer than the United Kingdom’s 200 nuclear weapons.[27] Several non-official sources estimate that China has around 400 nuclear warheads. However, U.S. intelligence estimates suggest a much smaller nuclear force than many non-governmental organizations.[28]

In 2011, high estimates of the Chinese nuclear arsenal again emerged. One three-year study by Georgetown University raised the possibility that China had 3,000 nuclear weapons, hidden in a sophisticated tunnel network.[29] The study was based on state media footage showing tunnel entrances, and estimated a 4,800 km (3,000 mile) network. The tunnel network was revealed after the 2008 Sichuan earthquake collapsed tunnels in the hills. China has confirmed the existence of the tunnel network.[30][31] In response, the US military was ordered by law to study the possibility of this tunnel network concealing a nuclear arsenal.[32] However, the tunnel theory has come under substantial attack due to several apparent flaws in its reasoning. From a production standpoint, China probably does not have enough fissile material to produce 3,000 nuclear weapons. Such an arsenal would require 9–12 tons of plutonium as well as 45–75 tons of enriched uranium and a substantial amount of tritium.[33][34] The Chinese are estimated to have only 2 tons of weapons-grade plutonium, which limits their arsenal to 450–600 weapons, despite a 16-ton disposable supply of uranium, theoretically enough for 1,000 warheads.[33] ]