Increased interactions between the Chinese and U.S. Navy in the contested South China Sea risk becoming more complicated by the increasingly sophisticated missiles being carried by submarines.
A new report to the U.S. Congress assessing a Chinese submarine-launched missile known as the YJ-18 highlights the danger, noting the missile accelerates to supersonic speed just before hitting its target, making it harder for a crew to defend their ship.
Defense chiefs from several countries in Southeast Asia have warned in recent months of the danger of undersea "clutter" as countries build up submarine fleets and the U.S. challenges China over its claim to a large swath of the South China Sea. Last week's U.S. patrol inside the zone of 22 km that China claims around its man-made islands in the waters saw the USS Lassen shadowed by two Chinese naval vessels.