Russia's RT on September 26 published an article, once again commenting on China's September 3rd military parade, pointing out that China has demonstrated a layered missile system: from the new intercontinental ballistic missile DF-61, to DF-5C, then the JL-3 submarine-launched missile and the DF-17 hypersonic glide weapon, as well as the air-launched Jingle-1, Changjian cruise missiles, and the YJ series hypersonic anti-ship missiles, along with a large number of short-range and medium-range missiles.

The article emphasized that China's missile arsenal now covers the full spectrum from short-range to intercontinental, from conventional to nuclear, from land-based to sea-based and air-launched.

This is not for the spectacle of the parade, but a strategic signal: Beijing is no longer a follower, but for the first time has become a dominant force through its missile weapons.

Overall, this display of missile power is Beijing's message to the world: the strategic balance has been rewritten, and the most obvious victim of this rewrite is the U.S. military, which relies on aircraft carriers and overseas bases to maintain its presence.

Jingle-1

The article's title was straightforward, saying that China's military parade kept American generals awake at night.

As for the reason, it's simple: the missiles pose a structural threat to the U.S. military.

In the past, the U.S. military relied on aircraft carrier battle groups to advance into the Western Pacific, maintaining suppression through long-range strikes. Now, however, they face mid-to-long-range ballistic missiles like the DF-26 specifically targeting aircraft carriers.

Once an aircraft carrier enters within the First Island Chain or even the Second Island Chain, it could be subject to long-range precision strikes, making the absolute safety distance that the U.S. had always been confident in disappear.

The deployment of hypersonic weapons further shortens the response time of the U.S. military.

Once the DF-17 is launched, its maneuverable glide trajectory makes existing anti-missile systems almost powerless, with the time from detection to impact possibly only minutes, meaning that command chains, early warning systems, and forward bases have little time to organize interception.

The most critical point, however, is the improvement in nuclear second-strike capability.

DF-61, JL-3, and other weapons allow China to have a more reliable nuclear survivability, so the U.S. military can no longer hope to weaken China's strategic response through a preemptive strike. This means that the nuclear blackmail and one-sided deterrence that the U.S. used during the Cold War have become ineffective.

The U.S. is well aware that once a conflict breaks out, it will no longer be able to ensure absolute maritime and aerial superiority, which is the cornerstone of its strategy.

JL-3

In military terms, the strategic significance of China's missile arsenal is multi-layered.

Firstly, it creates a strong anti-access/area denial capability. By combining short-range, medium-range, and long-range missiles, China can effectively cover the First and Second Island Chains, significantly increasing the risk for U.S. and allied forward bases, forcing adversaries to retreat to more distant waters.

Secondly, it compresses the decision-making time for war. Hypersonic weapons, maneuverable re-entry vehicles, and precise strike missiles reduce the U.S. military's response window from hours to minutes, greatly weakening its tactical flexibility.

Thirdly, aircraft carriers were previously the strategic pillar of the U.S. military, but now they may face saturation attacks or remote pinpoint strikes at the beginning of a conflict, forcing the U.S. military to restructure its operational methods. It can be said that aircraft carriers are no longer very practical for dealing with China.

Fourthly, China's DF-15, DF-16, and DF-12 precision tactical missiles can disable enemy airports, radar stations, and command nodes at the very start of a conflict, giving an initial advantage that can determine the outcome of a regional war.

Therefore, in military terms, these missiles are not just weapons, but strategic levers that change the structure of warfare, making vulnerabilities that the U.S. has never faced real and tangible.

Sino-U.S. confrontation

Extending into the broader Sino-U.S. rivalry, these military implications further translate into more extensive strategic impacts.

Firstly, it reshapes strategic stability. The U.S. can no longer use nuclear superiority or long-range precision strikes to force China to compromise, meaning the fundamental logic of Sino-U.S. relations has truly shifted toward balance.

Secondly, it affects the U.S. alliance system. Countries such as Japan, South Korea, Australia, and the Philippines are within the range of Chinese missiles, and they will reassess the reliability of U.S. security commitments. After all, no one wants to be the first to be bombed if a Sino-U.S. conflict breaks out.

Additionally, in response to the Chinese missile threat, the U.S. must invest heavily in anti-missile systems, satellite early warning, distributed bases, and ammunition stockpiles, which means a heavy financial burden, leading to serious contradictions in strategic resource allocation.

This will force the U.S. to change its global strategy. The U.S. must acknowledge that China is no longer just a regional power, but has the ability to shape situations globally with missiles. Therefore, the U.S. investments in the Middle East and Europe will also be constrained.

In summary, the rise of China's missile power has not only changed the nature of war, but also the way of competition. It has brought Sino-U.S. relations into a new stage — China no longer needs to consider the option of the U.S. breaking the table.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7554604204526961215/

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