China’s weapons display reflects country’s president’s vision for new world order

The huge military parade through central Beijing on Wednesday was a deliberately fearsome display of weaponry designed to send a message that Xi Jinping’s vision of a new world order with China at the apex will be backed up with high-tech arms that would seem, in many cases, to be ahead of its rivals, CNN writes.

While much post-parade attention will be focused on new long-range nuclear-armed weapons – like the DF-61 intercontinental ballistic missile – what may be even more important in the long run are weapons like the new mobile truck- and ship-mounted laser air defense weapons.

If these are already deployed in numbers in the People’s Liberation Army forces (PLA), as China indicated in pre-parade press conferences, they could present real problems for any adversary’s ability to blunt Chinese military movements around the region.

But some certainly stood out, including the DF-61, a huge intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) carried on an eight-axle truck that would be the PLA Rocket Force’s first new ICBM since the DF-41 was introduced at a 2019 military parade. Missiles with hypersonic glide vehicles (HGVs) were also highlighted. HGVs can carry warheads at speeds greater than five times the speed of sound with irregular flight trajectories that can vex missile defenses.

An impressive array of drones were also on display, from extra-large unmanned submarines to aircraft that can fly as “loyal wingmen” to the PLA Air Force’s state-of-the-art stealth fighters. Ground drones, some armed with machine guns, others suited for mine-clearing or logistics, were also in the formations. The PLA showed two versions, one massive one designed for naval air defense, another that looked smaller and truck-mounted for to protect troops on the ground.