A North Korean missile could reach the United States in about 33 minutes, according to a Chinese analysis.
According to the new report, Open Nuclear Network analyst Tianran Xu stated that Chinese scientists conducted a simulation of a North Korean missile attack on the United States.
The study discovered that if missile defense systems failed to intercept the nuclear missile, it could strike the US mainland in 33 minutes. The analysis found that targets on the west and east coasts of the United States would be easily accessible.
The study employed a fictitious launch of North Korea’s Hwasong-15 missile, a nuclear-capable missile with an effective range of 13,000 km, “enough to attack the whole US heartland,” according to the South China Morning Post.
The US missile defense headquarters would receive an alert approximately 20 seconds after the missile is launched, and the first batch of intercepting missiles from the US would lift off from Fort Greely in Alaska in 11 minutes. If the first set of interceptors fails, another set will be launched from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
The study said that the existing US missile defence network had gaps that could be exploited by adversaries.
According to the Centre for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, the US misile defence system has been 55 percent effective and it “cannot be relied upon to protect the US from even an extremely limited attack”.