The People’s Liberation Army has for the first time publicly displayed some of the most modern and deadliest missiles in its possession.
During rehearsals for the military parade due to be held on September 3, commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Chinese victory over Japan in World War II, glimpses of a number of new Chinese missiles were seen.
The Dong Feng (DF, East Wind) DF-15B short-range ballistic missile (SRBM), the DF-16 medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM), the DF-21C MRBM, the warhead section of the DF-5B intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), the DF-31 A ICBM, the DF-10 land-attack cruise missile (LACM) and the DF-26 intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM) – named the “Guam killer” missile were some of the missiles seen during the parade rehearsal.
“As with all other missiles at the rehearsal, the DF-26C missile was covered to conceal details. That said, it appears to have three stages with a lengthy nose cone that potentially could incorporate terminal guidance systems,” IHS Jane’s Defense Weekly reports.
The DF-26C can allegedly be fitted unto a road-mobile chassis – called the transporter-erector-launcher (TEL) – and uses solid fuel. Based on the TEL, it appears that the DF-26C is produced by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC).
The DF-26C is a derivative of the DF-21, the notorious “carrier killer” missile. It has a range of 3,500 to 4,000 km, which would put the US military bases on Guam, the largest and southernmost of the Mariana Islands, within its range.
This is one of the threats that has been looming in the future since before it was envisioned. It is also why many of us have been ringing the bell about the need for every surface combatant to be able to defend itself (if not a greater area which is better) from at least a Tactical Ballistic Missile. Guess no one is listening. When you know about something ahead of time and you do nothing about it . . . it is called . . . what?
A missile with a nuclear warhead directed toward Guam would most certainly be part of a first barrage, during an all-out confrontation between China and the USA; minimum civilian casualties…giving both nations the possibility to step back from the brink of total annihilation. Given past American propensity to attack civilian cities, without due conscience, it is debatable, if American leaders have the wisdom, to see where its military expansion policies have led lead to.
US can respond by deploying THAAD batteries there and deploying AEGIS destroyers.
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