China And The Bomb

On October 16th, 1964, the People's Republic of China (PRC) joined the nuclear club when it tested a nuclear device at its Lop Nur test site in Inner Mongolia. For several years, the CIA had been monitoring Chinese developments, often with anxiety, hampered by the lack of adequate sources. Documents include intelligence estimates and analyses reflecting efforts by the CIA to forecast when Beijing could and would test a weapon and what its diplomatic and military implications could be. Whatever else this first atomic test signifies, it constitutes a major historical landmark in the course of events that began when China was defeated by Britain in the Opium War. The Chinese dragon indeed has awakened.