Former U.S. defense officials urge Pentagon to scale up hypersonic weapons to match China, Russia
WASHINGTON — A group of former senior U.S. defense officials is urging the Pentagon to dramatically expand investment in advanced hypersonic weapons and manufacturing capacity, warning that China and Russia are outpacing the United States in developing high-speed, maneuverable missiles that threaten to erode U.S. military deterrence.
The recommendation comes in a new report released Oct. 9 by the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security. The study urges the Department of War to rapidly field both offensive hypersonic strike weapons and counter-hypersonic interceptors at a scale sufficient to achieve meaningful deterrence and, if necessary, defeat attacks from adversaries.
The report was written by the Atlantic Council’s Hypersonic Capabilities Task Force, for...