China is building a military complex on the outskirts of Beijing that will be 10 times bigger than the Pentagon – until recently the largest office in the world, the…
The post China building ‘doomsday fortress’ 10 times bigger than Pentagon appeared first on Global Construction Review.
Satellite images taken by Earth observation company Planet Labs show a 6-sq-km construction site 30km southwest of Beijing, with excavations that military experts suspect will house bunkers to protect officials in the event of nuclear war.
Commentators have speculated that the immense project, which has more than 100 cranes in operation, signals China’s intent to further develop its ability to fight an all-out war with the US.
The Chinese embassy in Washington said it was “not aware of the details” but said China was “committed to the path of peaceful development”.
The Financial Times said signs at the site warned against the use of drones or photography. Guards at one gate said entry was prohibited and refused to talk about the project.
A former US intelligence official told the paper that although the People’s Liberation Army’s headquarters in central Beijing was new, it was not designed as a secure command centre.
They said: “China’s main secure command centre is in the Western Hills, north-east of the new facility, and was built decades ago at the height of the Cold War.
“The size, scale and partially buried characteristics of the new facility suggest it will replace the Western Hills complex as the primary wartime command facility.”
Another unnamed source told the paper that the “fortress” could only serve one purpose: as a “doomsday bunker for China’s increasingly sophisticated and capable military”.
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The post China building ‘doomsday fortress’ 10 times bigger than Pentagon appeared first on Global Construction Review.