Strike groups can counter China’s ‘carrier killer’ missiles: US admiral

• The US admiral said his strike group is “capable of accomplishing the mission regardless of what the threat is.”
• Maj. Gen. Carlos Sardiello dismissed concerns about China’s “carrier killer” missiles.
• China has doubled its stockpile of “carrier killer” missiles from 2021 to 2022.

A US admiral dismissed concerns that China’s “carrier killer” missiles could pose a serious threat to the US Navy’s fleet.

“I have absolute confidence that the carrier strike group can accomplish the mission it was designed to do effectively and safely,” Maj. Gen. Carlos Sardiello told reporters Wednesday.

Sardiello, who commands the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson Strike Group, gave his assessment of the danger posed by China’s DF-21 intermediate-range ballistic missile.

“Our highly trained seafarers operate in these complex conflict zones and are capable of carrying out missions with lethality and survivability, no matter the threat,” Sardiello said Wednesday. Ta.

The Pentagon’s China Military Power Report released last year estimated that China has doubled its stockpile of DF-21s in recent years, increasing from about 500 in 2021 to 1,000 in 2022. It is reported that there are.

In 2021, the Pentagon said in a report that the DF-21 would give China “the ability to conduct long-range precision strikes against ships, including aircraft carriers, traveling from mainland China to the Western Pacific Ocean.”

Representatives from China’s Ministry of Defense did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider outside of normal business hours.