- 1. In what year did China's nuclear weapons program begin?
A) 1972
B) 1955
C) 1965
D) 1980
- 2. Which missile was intended to target US bases in South Korea and Taiwan?
A) DF-5
B) DF-2A
C) DF-4
D) DF-3
- 3. What event in 1972 influenced China's alignment with the United States?
A) Richard Nixon's visit to China
B) Third Taiwan Strait Crisis
C) US bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade
D) Sino-Soviet border conflict
- 4. Which missile upgrade in 1995 allowed China to strike the contiguous US?
A) DF-5A
B) DF-3
C) DF-2A
D) DF-4
- 5. What year did China add MIRVs to the DF-5B missiles?
A) 1999
B) 2005
C) 1995
D) 2001
- 6. Which missile was designed to penetrate the ABM-1 Galosh system?
A) DF-5
B) DF-3
C) DF-4
D) DF-2A
- 7. What was the primary purpose of the neutron bomb for China?
A) To target US bases in Japan
B) To target Soviet cities
C) To penetrate US missile defenses
D) To block or stop Soviet tank routes over the Sino-Soviet and Sino-Mongolian borders
- 8. Which missile was intended to target Moscow and the Soviet west?
A) DF-4
B) DF-5
C) DF-3
D) DF-2A
- 9. What was a perceived threat to China's DF-5 missiles?
A) Their inability to reach the US
B) Their inability to carry multiple warheads
C) Their lack of nuclear warheads
D) Their vulnerability to a first strike
- 10. What was China's primary nuclear adversary by the mid-1960s?
A) North Korea
B) The United States
C) The Soviet Union
D) Japan
- 11. What was a significant factor in China's perception of a nuclear threat from the US in 2001?
A) US bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade
B) US withdrawal from the ABM Treaty
C) US missile defense
D) Third Taiwan Strait Crisis
- 12. What was the range of the DF-5 missile when completed?
A) 10,000 km
B) 5,000 km
C) 7,000 km
D) 9,000 km
- 13. What was the purpose of the DF-3 missile warheads mass production starting in 1969?
A) To target US bases in Japan
B) To target US bases in Taiwan
C) To target the USSR's cities and industrial centers
D) To target US bases in South Korea
- 14. Which missile was intended to target US bases in Japan and the Philippines?
A) DF-2A
B) DF-5
C) DF-4
D) DF-3
- 15. What was the primary reason for China's development of a neutron bomb?
A) To counter a North Korean threat on China's border
B) To counter a Soviet threat on China's border
C) To counter a Japanese threat on China's border
D) To counter a US threat on China's border
- 16. What was a significant event in 1999 that strained US-China strategic relations?
A) Third Taiwan Strait Crisis
B) US bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade
C) US withdrawal from the ABM Treaty
D) Hainan Island incident
- 17. What was a perceived weakness of China's nuclear leverage against the US?
A) China's DF-5s carried multiple warheads
B) US policy permitted first use
C) China's DF-5s were based in mobile silos
D) China's DF-5s were mobile
- 18. What was the purpose of the DF-4 missile?
A) To target US bases in Taiwan
B) To target Moscow and the Soviet west
C) To target US bases in South Korea
D) To target US bases in Japan
- 19. What was the purpose of the DF-5A upgrade in 1995?
A) To target Soviet cities
B) To strike the contiguous US
C) To target US bases in South Korea
D) To target US bases in Japan
- 20. What was the purpose of the DF-2A missile?
A) To target Soviet cities
B) To target US bases in South Korea and Taiwan
C) To target US bases in the Philippines
D) To target US bases in Japan
- 21. What was the main purpose of China's nuclear weapons according to the 1958 program guidelines?
A) To develop a large tactical nuclear arsenal
B) Primarily political tools influencing the decision towards a small strategic arsenal
C) To support Soviet nuclear capabilities
D) To use as a defensive measure against the United States
- 22. Which city was the research institute responsible for the development of China's first atomic bomb located?
A) Qinghai
B) Baotou
C) Lanzhou
D) Beijing
- 23. Who was the director of the National Defense Science and Technology Commission established in 1958?
A) Bo Yibo
B) Jiang Nanxiang
C) Nie Rongzhen
D) Qian Sanqiang
- 24. What was the name of the facility in Qinghai province responsible for nuclear weapons research and design?
A) Lop Nur Nuclear Weapon Test Base
B) Base 221, later renamed Plant 221
C) Huayuan Road Project
D) Beijing Ninth Institute
- 25. What did China export to the Soviet Union in return for nuclear assistance?
A) Raw uranium ore
B) Nuclear weapons technology
C) Ballistic missiles
D) Plutonium
- 26. Which Soviet leader's position became insecure, leading to a trade with the CCP for nuclear technology?
A) Mikhail Gorbachev
B) Nikita Khrushchev
C) Joseph Stalin
D) Leonid Brezhnev
- 27. In which province was the uranium refinement plant constructed in 1958?
A) Qinghai
B) Lanzhou
C) Baotou
D) Jiuquan
- 28. Which city was the site of the plutonium production facility established by 1960?
A) Jiuquan
B) Haiyan
C) Baotou
D) Lanzhou
- 29. What was the name of the nuclear test site established by 1960?
A) Qinghai
B) Lop Nur
C) Haiyan
D) Baotou
- 30. In which year did China conduct its first nuclear test?
A) 1970
B) 1955
C) 1964
D) 1966
- 31. What is the estimated number of nuclear warheads in China's stockpile as of 2026?
A) 620
B) 800
C) 500
D) 1000
- 32. Which treaty did China sign in 1996?
A) Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty
B) Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty
C) Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
D) Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
- 33. How many nuclear tests did China conduct before signing the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty?
A) 30
B) 60
C) 45
D) 50
- 34. What is China's projected number of nuclear warheads by 2035?
A) 2,000
B) 1,500
C) 1,800
D) 1,200
- 35. Which country did China substantially aid in developing nuclear weapons?
A) India
B) Pakistan
C) North Korea
D) Iran
- 36. What was the name of the Chinese force that operated nuclear delivery systems since 1966?
A) Strategic Support Force
B) Rocket Force
C) Second Artillery Corps
D) People's Liberation Army
- 37. What was the number of atmospheric nuclear tests conducted by China?
A) 15
B) 30
C) 40
D) 23
- 38. What was the number of underground nuclear tests conducted by China?
A) 10
B) 25
C) 30
D) 22
- 39. In which year did China halt weapons-grade nuclear material production?
A) 2000
B) 1990
C) 1985
D) 1995
- 40. What was the name of the US nuclear test that is considered a contributing factor to the Korean Armistice Agreement?
A) Operation Ivy
B) Upshot–Knothole Grable
C) Operation Sandstone
D) Operation Crossroads
- 41. What was the estimated number of warheads assigned to Dongfeng ballistic missiles?
A) 450
B) 700
C) 600
D) 509
- 42. What is the estimated number of warheads assigned to JL-3 missiles on Type 094 submarines?
A) 50
B) 100
C) 72
D) 150
- 43. What is the estimated number of warheads assigned to Xi'an H-6 strategic bombers?
A) 40
B) 10
C) 20
D) 30
- 44. What date did Chinese researchers consider as the rebirth of their nuclear program?
A) June 1959
B) Spring 1960
C) July 1960
D) Mid-1961
- 45. What codename was given to China's first atomic bomb?
A) 596
B) Dragon's Breath
C) First Light
D) Project 596
- 46. Which element was used in the Chinese model of the atomic bomb developed in 1960?
A) Plutonium
B) Uranium-238
C) Uranium-235
D) Thorium
- 47. What did Mao Zedong emphasize about the importance of weapons in war?
A) Conventional weapons are more important than nuclear weapons
B) Only nuclear weapons are important
C) Weapons are the most decisive element in war
D) Weapons are important but not decisive; the spiritual atomic bomb is more important
- 48. Who was appointed director of the Central Special Committee in 1962?
A) Chen Yi
B) Zhou Enlai
C) Liu Shaoqi
D) Nie Rongzhen
- 49. What was the yield of China's first multi-stage thermonuclear weapon test '629'?
A) 3 Mt
B) 130 kt
C) 120 kt
D) 3.3 Mt
- 50. What was the yield of the first air-dropped hydrogen bomb test in Project 639?
A) 3 Mt
B) 130 kt
C) 120 kt
D) 3.3 Mt
- 51. What was the name of the tactical nuclear bomb developed by China during the Sino-Soviet border conflict?
A) 629
B) 524
C) Project 639
D) Kuangbiao-1
- 52. Which aircraft was intended to deliver the Kuangbiao-1 tactical nuclear bomb?
A) Su-27 fighters
B) Nanchang Q-5 ground-attack fighters
C) Xi'an H-6 bombers
D) Mig-21 fighters
- 53. When did China conduct its first underground nuclear test?
A) 1971
B) 1969
C) 1980
D) 1982
- 54. What was the yield of the nuclear warhead tested during Operation 21-716?
A) 3 megatons
B) 1 megaton
C) 500 kilotons
D) Approximately 700 kilotons
- 55. When did China test its first boosted fission thermonuclear primary?
A) October 1982
B) November 1971
C) July 1970
D) 1988
- 56. When did the Changzheng 6 conduct its first successful test-launch of a JL-1?
A) 12 October 1982
B) 27 September 1988
C) 1980
D) 7 October 1982
- 57. Which report accused China of using espionage to acquire US nuclear warhead designs?
A) Cox Report
B) China Military Power Report
C) Deng Xiaoping Report
D) Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Report
- 58. What was the codename for the highly enriched uranium implosion bomb design transferred to Pakistan?
A) W88
B) DF-5B
C) 548
D) DF-31
- 59. What was the primary mechanism for the survivability of China's nuclear forces during the Cold War?
A) Mobility
B) Ratification of treaties
C) Subcritical testing
D) Concealment
- 60. In which year was the Second Artillery Corps renamed to the People's Liberation Army Rocket Force?
A) 2016
B) 2024
C) 1996
D) 2002
- 61. What capability was the DF-5B missile reported to have in 2002?
A) Subcritical testing
B) Solid propellant
C) Hydronuclear testing
D) Multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles
- 62. How many nuclear warheads did the US Department of Defense assess China had in December 2024?
A) 700
B) 1,000
C) 500
D) 600
- 63. By which year did the US Department of Defense predict China would have 1,000 nuclear warheads?
A) 2026
B) 2024
C) 2030
D) 2025
- 64. Which missile was reported to have more than 100 units loaded with solid propellant in silos near Mongolia?
A) DF-41
B) DF-31 ICBMs
C) DF-31A
D) DF-5B
- 65. Which U.S. news outlet reported on China's overhaul of its nuclear weapons infrastructure in April 2026?
A) Al Jazeera
B) The Daily Telegraph
C) BBC
D) CNN
- 66. Which province was reported to have sites undergoing nuclear infrastructure overhaul in 2026?
A) Sichuan Province
B) Jiuquan
C) Lop Nur
D) Mongolia
- 67. How many sites were reported to be expanding in September 2026?
A) Ten
B) Seven
C) Five
D) Nine
- 68. Who publicly announced China's neutron bomb development in 1999?
A) Deng Jiaxian
B) Deng Xiaoping
C) Wen Ho Lee
D) Zhao Qizheng
- 69. What type of testing did China conduct for France in the 1990s?
A) Hydronuclear possibly subcritical testing
B) Two-point implosion testing
C) Aspherical primary testing
D) Neutron bomb testing
- 70. What was the primary method of nuclear force survivability for China after 1996?
A) Espionage
B) Concealment
C) Subcritical testing
D) Mobility
- 71. What was the claimed purpose of the silo construction by Chinese state media until 2024?
A) For civilian housing
B) For military training
C) For missile testing
D) For windmills
- 72. By 2025, how many silos for solid-propellant missiles were assessed to be constructed?
A) 300
B) 400
C) 350
D) 320
- 73. Who assessed that the network of silos has been hardened to deter a first strike?
A) Hans M. Kristensen
B) Chinese state media
C) The US Department of Defense
D) The Federation of American Scientists
- 74. Which Russian aircraft did China conduct a joint patrol with in November 2024?
A) Tupolev Tu-95MS
B) MiG-31
C) MiG-29
D) Sukhoi Su-35
- 75. How many joint flights of Xi'an H-6K non-nuclear-capable strategic bombers with Russian Tu-95s had China conducted previously?
A) Ten
B) Twelve
C) Five
D) Eight
- 76. Which missile was potentially a modification of the DF-41 ICBM and displayed during the 2025 China Victory Day Parade?
A) DF-61 ICBM
B) DF-5C ICBM
C) JL-3 ICBM
D) JL-1 ICBM
- 77. What type of warhead is the US Department of Defense believed to be assigned to the DF-5C ICBM?
A) Sub-megaton
B) Single-megaton
C) Deca-megaton
D) Multi-megaton
- 78. Which missile is an air-launched ballistic missile displayed during the 2025 China Victory Day Parade?
A) JL-3
B) JL-1
C) DF-5C
D) DF-61
- 79. From which location was the DF-31 missile launched?
A) Shanghai
B) Guangzhou
C) Beijing
D) Hainan island
- 80. From what type of submarine was the ballistic missile launched?
A) A nuclear-powered submarine
B) A diesel-powered submarine
C) A conventional submarine
D) A midget submarine
- 81. Who argued that China may reject more expansive notification for missile launches?
A) Michael MacArthur Bosack
B) Jane Doe
C) Robert Johnson
D) John Smith
- 82. What was the reason given by China for the hazard area during the submarine missile test?
A) Radioactive fallout
B) Chemical leakage
C) Nuclear explosion
D) Falling space debris
- 83. How long before the launch did China clarify the involvement of a ballistic missile?
A) 24 hours
B) 12 hours
C) 6 hours
D) About 90 minutes
- 84. Which country's EEZ was included in the hazard area for the submarine missile test?
A) New Zealand
B) Japan
C) Australia
D) Fiji
- 85. Which year did the United States Department of State first allege that China could resume low-yield nuclear testing?
A) 2020
B) 2025
C) 2026
D) 2023
- 86. What did satellite imagery in September 2023 show at Lop Nur?
A) Construction at test sites
B) Completion of test sites
C) Dismantling of test sites
D) No significant activity
- 87. What technique did Thomas G. DiNanno claim China used to prepare for nuclear tests?
A) Decoupling
B) Seismic masking
C) Containment
D) Subcritical testing
- 88. How many launchers did the FAS estimate China operates in 2026?
A) 750 launchers
B) 800 launchers
C) 900 launchers
D) 867 launchers
- 89. In 2026, how many of China's launchers were land-based according to the FAS?
A) 775
B) 700
C) 600
D) 850
- 90. In 2026, how many launchers did the FAS estimate China operates?
A) 900
B) 800
C) 867
D) 750
- 91. In which year did China reportedly stop producing highly enriched uranium for its nuclear weapons?
A) 1990
B) 2000
C) 1987
D) 2018
- 92. In which year did the U.S. Department of State describe China's no-first-use policy as 'already ambiguous'?
A) 2024
B) 2022
C) 2023
D) 2025
- 93. Which Chinese leader reaffirmed the country's retaliatory nuclear posture in the 1990s?
A) Jiang Zemin
B) Mao Zedong
C) Zhou Enlai
D) Xi Jinping
- 94. What was the purpose of China's nuclear weapons development according to Zhou Enlai in 1957?
A) economic development
B) deterrence
C) space exploration
D) offensive strategy
- 95. What was the estimated total stockpile of highly enriched uranium for China's nuclear weapons as of 2018?
A) 730 tons
B) 1,000 tons
C) 2.9 tons
D) 14 tons
- 96. What was the official reason given for land confiscation in Sichuan in 2022?
A) a 'state secret'
B) urban expansion
C) economic development
D) environmental protection
- 97. Which U.S. administration's Nuclear Posture Review was discussed by Chinese proponents of conditioning the no-first use policy?
A) Obama administration
B) Bush administration
C) Biden administration
D) Trump administration
- 98. What is the focus of China's nuclear second strike doctrine?
A) Civilian countervalue targets
B) Naval targets
C) Space-based targets
D) Military counterforce targets
- 99. What is the yield level of China's ICBMs as assessed in 1999?
A) Gigaton-level
B) Kiloton-level
C) Teraton-level
D) Megaton-level
- 100. What is the estimated impact of a launch on warning posture on PLA decision-making?
A) No impact on decision-making
B) Compressed decision-making timelines
C) Decentralized decision-making
D) Extended decision-making timelines
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