INDIA may soon build a hypersonic missile to challenge China’s dominance, as tensions rise over New Delhi’s nuclear weapons stockpile

In the midst of rising tensions with Beijing, India tested a nuclear-capable missile last month. The Agni-V missile is believed to have the capability to reach anyplace in China, but India maintains its commitment to “no first use.” The Agni-V missile has a range of 3,125 miles and is capable of reaching all of China; however, it lacks hypersonic capabilities.

China has been militarizing space for some time. It recently conducted a test of a hypersonic weapon launched from a spaceship traveling at least five times the speed of sound.

China’s newest development in the race to develop a lethal hypersonic missile arsenal has left US scientists perplexed.

A hypersonic missile may enter low Earth orbit and travel to any location in the planet before plunging from space at several times the speed of sound towards its target.

India, on the other hand, is “dedicated” to obtaining the same degree of technical prowess, according to a Rand Corporation research.

“Hypersonic missiles are now being developed primarily by the United States, Russia, and China,” according to the research.

“Aside from these three, other countries are working on hypersonic technology to some extent.”

“The most devoted countries are France and India.

“Both rely on Russian cooperation to some extent.

“The following projects in terms of effort are those of Australia, Japan, and European organizations.”

According to the paper, hypersonic technology offers the potential for dual-use.

It stated that this would be utilized for non-military objectives such as space launch and spacecraft retrieval.

However, according to the Rand Corporation’s assessment, “once a country has hypersonic technology, its goals can alter.”

“The current situation, with hypersonic research openly communicated and widely dispersed among governments, industry, and institutions, creates obstacles for non-proliferation,” according to the document titled “Hypersonic Missile Non-proliferation.”

China has also boosted the development of nuclear warheads, according to US intelligence.

These warheads could be carried by a hypersonic missile, as well as traditional submarine and land-based ballistic missiles, according to the Pentagon.