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China quietly loads 100+ ICBMs into new missile silos near Mongolia: report
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China has reportedly loaded more than 100 intercontinental ballistic missiles into three newly constructed silo fields near its border with Mongolia and shows little interest in arms control talks, according to a draft Pentagon report seen by Reuters.
The assessment underscores Beijing’s accelerating military buildup, with the report saying China is expanding and modernizing its nuclear forces faster than any other nuclear-armed power. Chinese officials have repeatedly dismissed such findings as attempts to “smear and defame China and deliberately mislead the international community.”
The Pentagon declined to comment when contacted by Fox News Digital about the Reuters report.
Military vehicles carrying DF-41 intercontinental ballistic missiles travel past Tiananmen Square during the military parade marking the 70th founding anniversary of People’s Republic of China, on its National Day in Beijing, China Oct. 1, 2019. Jason Lee/Reuters (Jason Lee/Reuters)
Last month, U.S. President Donald Trump said he may pursue denuclearization discussions with China and Russia. The Pentagon report, however, concluded that Beijing does not appear inclined to engage.
“We continue to see no appetite from Beijing for pursuing such measures or more comprehensive arms control discussions,” the report said.
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China’s rocket force has rapidly advanced. (CNS Photo via Reuters)
According to the assessment, China has likely loaded more than 100 solid-fueled DF-31 intercontinental ballistic missiles into silo fields near the Mongolian border. While the Pentagon had previously disclosed the existence of the silo fields, it had not publicly estimated how many missiles had been placed inside them.
China’s embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The report did not identify potential targets for the newly loaded missiles and could change before it is formally submitted to Congress, U.S. officials said.
CHINA’S ENERGY SIEGE OF TAIWAN COULD CRIPPLE US SUPPLY CHAINS, REPORT WARNS
China’s Long March 2F rocket, carrying three astronauts for the Shenzhou 21 manned space mission, blasts off at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Jiuquan, northwestern China, Friday, Oct. 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Andy Wong) (Andy Wong/AP Photo)
China’s nuclear warhead stockpile remained in the low 600s in 2024, reflecting what the report described as a slower production rate compared to previous years. Still, Beijing is on track to exceed 1,000 nuclear warheads by 2030.
China says it adheres to a nuclear strategy of self-defense and maintains a no-first-use policy. But analysts say Beijing’s public messaging increasingly contradicts that restraint.
“For a country that still advocates a policy of ‘no-first use,’ China has become increasingly comfortable showcasing its nuclear arsenal, including parading its nuclear triad together for the first time in September,” said Jack Burnham, a senior research analyst in the China Program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
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Trump and Xi will meet in South Korea for the first time in six years, on Oct. 30, 2025. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)
Burnham said Beijing’s rejection of arms control talks reflects the pace of its weapons construction. “China has no interest in locking in a long-term strategic disadvantage, and every intention of building an arsenal on par with its perceived place in the world, alongside and potentially eventually ahead of the United States,” he said.
The report also warned that China expects to be able to fight and win a war over Taiwan by the end of 2027. Beijing claims the self-governed island as its own territory and has never ruled out the use of force.
China is refining options to seize Taiwan by “brute force,” including long-range strikes up to 2,000 nautical miles from the mainland that could disrupt U.S. military operations in the Asia-Pacific, the report said.
The findings come as the 2010 New START treaty, the last remaining nuclear arms control agreement between the United States and Russia, approaches expiration. The treaty limits both sides to 1,550 deployed strategic nuclear warheads.
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J-20 fighter jets fly in the sky during flight performance at the aviation open-day activities of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) and the Changchun Air Show 2025 on Sept. 19, 2025 in Changchun, Jilin Province of China. The event will be held from Sept. 19 to 23 in Changchun. (VCG via Getty Images)
“What is surprising is that China has now loaded only about 100 of the silos it has built recently,” said Gordon Chang. “That’s an indication money is tight in the People’s Liberation Army.”
Chang warned against extending New START without Beijing’s participation. “This is no time for the U.S. to agree to an extension of the New START Treaty with Russia,” he said. “Russia and China are de-facto allies, and they are ganging up on America. Without China in a deal — Beijing has flatly rejected every nuclear arms-control initiative of the U.S. —no treaty can be in America’s interest.”
Reuters contributed to this report.
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The United Kingdom on Monday blamed an Iran-linked proxy group for a string of antisemitic arson attacks targeting British Jewish sites, prompting the government to ban Tehran’s powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and impose sweeping new powers to crack down on foreign-backed sabotage.
British officials said the Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Right (IMCR) publicly claimed responsibility for seven attacks this year targeting Jewish and Israeli-linked locations, as well as a Persian-language media outlet critical of Iran’s government. According to the U.K. government, members of the IRGC’s elite Qods Force were “almost certainly” directing the group’s operations across Europe.
The attacks included fires at synagogues, Jewish charity ambulances and other Jewish community sites in London. No injuries were reported.
DESANTIS ANNOUNCES PLANS TO USE NEW STATE LAW TO TARGET DOZENS OF ALLEGED TERRORIST GROUPS
Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer hosts a reception with the Jewish community to discuss efforts to tackle antisemitism, at Downing Street, in London, July 13, 2026. (Reuters/Suzanne Plunkett/Pool)
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the new measures send a clear message to foreign adversaries seeking to sow violence.
“We will never let Britain be a playground for states who want to spread fear, division and violence on our streets,” Starmer said. “Anyone acting on behalf of those who threaten our national security should be in no doubt that there is no place for you in Britain.”
Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer discusses efforts to tackle antisemitism at Downing Street in London, Monday, July 13, 2026. (Suzanne Plunkett/Pool Photo via AP)
If Parliament approves the designations later this week, anyone carrying out acts of sabotage — including arson — on behalf of the IRGC, IMCR or Russia’s GRU Volunteer Corps could face life imprisonment. Supporting or assisting the groups could carry prison sentences of up to 14 years.
The British government said the new authorities, created under the National Security (State Threats) Act 2026, will make it easier for prosecutors to secure convictions because they will no longer have to prove a direct foreign government connection in every case.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood accused both Tehran and Moscow of relying on criminal proxies to conduct hostile operations inside the United Kingdom.
“Iran and Russia are using proxies and thugs to do their dirty work on our shores,” Mahmood said. “I have rapidly designated three groups so those working for them will be tracked down and put behind bars.”
ISRAEL FORTIFIES BORDER WITH JORDAN AS IRAN SEEKS NEW TERROR PATH
The government said IMCR emerged online earlier this year and has also claimed responsibility for attacks on synagogues in Belgium and the Netherlands. British intelligence officials say Iran-backed proxy groups have increasingly recruited members of criminal organizations to carry out sabotage, intimidation and physical attacks across Europe, often targeting Jewish communities and Iranian dissidents.
Charred remains of ambulances belonging to Hatzola, a Jewish community organization, which were set on fire in an incident that the police say is being treated as an antisemitic hate crime, in London, March 23, 2026. (Hannah McKay/Reuters)
According to the U.K., MI5 identified at least 20 potentially lethal Iran-backed plots against individuals in Britain over the past year. The government has already sanctioned more than 550 Iranian-linked individuals and entities and has pledged £250 million ($334,662,500) over three years to strengthen security for Jewish communities, including increased protection for synagogues, schools and community centers.
Britain also designated Russia’s GRU Volunteer Corps, saying the group acts as a proxy for Russian military intelligence by recruiting individuals online to conduct sabotage, arson and other hostile operations.
The crackdown comes just weeks after two Romanian men were sentenced to prison for stabbing a journalist working for a Persian-language television station in London, an attack a British judge said was carried out on behalf of the Iranian state.
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Iran did not immediately comment on Monday’s announcement, according to The Associated Press.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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The European Union has sanctioned VK Company, which dominates Russia’s online sphere, for colluding with the Kremlin to identify critics of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine and curtail access to independent sources of information.
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VK Company runs VKontakte, the country’s most popular social media site. Often described as “the Russian Facebook”, it has an estimated 70 million users.
The decision, taken on Monday by foreign ministers, points the finger at VK Company and an associated firm for developing and managing Max App, which is state-backed and comes pre-installed on all phones and tablets sold in Russia.
Citing experts, Brussels argues that Max App has “extensive surveillance features” that Russian authorities use to track online communications, gather data, monitor address books, identify user location and install autonomous updates.
The imposition of Max App has helped the state crack down on competitors, such as WhatsApp, Instagram and Telegram, and on VPNs, the private networks that Russians employ to bypass increasingly stringent state restrictions on the Internet.
“VK has cooperated with Russian authorities in their repressive actions, including by providing them with data concerning users of its services who posted content criticising Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, or other content banned by the authorities,” the legal text says.
“VK has also participated in the government-ordered ban on the use of VPNs, through which Russian internet users could previously access independent content.”
Monday’s decision introduces an asset freeze and prohibits EU companies from making funds available to VK Company. In a statement to Russian state-owned media outlet TASS, the firm said that its applications and services remained “available to users as normal”.
Besides VK Company, the EU also sanctioned Citadel, VAS Experts and Norsi-Trans, three companies that provide hardware and software for the so-called System of Operative Investigative Measures that Russian authorities use to track online communication and target journalists, opposition figures, minority groups and ordinary citizens.
The restrictions were adopted under a special regime dedicated to punishing human rights violations.
Separately, the EU sanctionednine individuals and four entities accused of carrying out “malicious” cyber attacks against several member states.
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