NewsWorld newsChinaSatellite images show China is building launch pads and bunkers near the isolated nuclear silos that hold its longest-range missiles09:05, 29 May 2026Updated 09:41, 29 May 2026New satellite images show China is building launch pads and bunkers in preparation for a potential nuclear missile strike.‌The vast military complex is taking shape near isolated nuclear silos that house the Chinese military’s longest-range missiles, images released by Reuters show. Experts say the infrastructure is being built to ensure no American first strike on China’s nuclear arsenal could destroy Beijing's ability to retaliate.‌The desert infrastructure - which includes more than 80 launch pads for use by mobile missile launchers and air-defence batteries and three octagon-shaped installations - is located in eastern Xinjiang, in China’s remote north-west, near the Hami nuclear silo field. Two of the octagon structures, which contain accommodation for personnel and large military vehicles, have been built over the past six years.‌The images also show facilities that could support electronic warfare, satellite communications and command operations, according to three security experts who analysed the pictures.The scale of the construction marks a major step-up of hardened infrastructure designed to protect and operate China’s land-based nuclear forces as Beijing competes with the US in nuclear capability and tensions rise over issues such as Taiwan’s sovereignty.‌"We can see this infrastructure is being built on a grand scale, covering thousands of square kilometres of desert beyond the silo fields," said Alexander Neill, an adjunct fellow at Hawaii’s Pacific Forum think tank.Depending on the precise capabilities, he said, "we’re looking at a very considerable enhancement and diversification of China’s strategic nuclear deterrent."Protecting its desert silos is considered key to China’s stated goal of maintaining a minimal but credible nuclear deterrent - a policy based on the ability to retaliate if attacked first. While the People’s Liberation Army can launch nuclear weapons from submarines and aircraft, the silo fields in the Xinjiang region and neighbouring Gansu province remain at the core of China's nuclear forces.Article continues belowChina’s nuclear build-up has become one of the most closely scrutinised aspects of President Xi Jinping’s military modernisation programme because of what some foreign diplomats describe as Beijing’s lack of transparency and failed US efforts to engage Chinese officials over the country’s evolving nuclear capabilities.Although China has a "no first use" policy under which it would not initiate a nuclear exchange, some senior Western diplomats and analysts say it could still resort to nuclear coercion to deter outside involvement in a conflict over Taiwan.Earlier this month, Xi warned US President Donald Trump that mishandling of their countries' disagreements over Taiwan - which China claims as its territory - could lead them to a "dangerous place". Taiwan’s government rejects China’s sovereignty claim.Choose Daily Mirror as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.‌ChinaBreaking News