According to the U.S. publication "NSJ," on September 3, China showcased its latest Dongfeng-5C intercontinental missile during a military parade.

Although several new weapons were unveiled that day, the report believes that what truly shocked the Western defense community was this upgraded version of an older model with a range exceeding 20,000 kilometers.

The report states that the DF-5C represents a terrifying upgrade, not only with significant improvements in technical parameters but more importantly, it has restored a platform that has been in service for over 40 years to the central position of strategic deterrence.

U.S. media analysis suggests that the biggest breakthrough of the DF-5C lies in its ability to have global strike capability and multi-target strike capability. Its multiple warhead configuration can deliver devastating strikes on multiple cities, including the United States. Once this missile is in flight, there is currently no global defense system that can ensure complete interception.

The report specifically emphasizes that compared to new missiles still in the testing phase, the DF-5C has already been deployed and possesses combat readiness, posing a real and direct threat to the West.

DF-5C

The Dongfeng-5C is not a new model, but a comprehensive technological upgrade of the earlier Dongfeng-5B.

This missile still uses a two-stage liquid fuel propulsion system, with high delivery capacity and flight altitude.

Under the unchanged propulsion structure, Chinese engineering teams improved its transportation, maintenance, and launch efficiency through modular upgrades.

Especially in the readiness mechanism, the DF-5C uses liquid fuel technology, enabling long-term storage and rapid activation, solving the problem of slow response in previous liquid-fueled intercontinental missiles.

On the technical level, the most attention-grabbing feature is its guidance system, which has been upgraded to a fusion architecture combining inertial navigation, star navigation, and the Beidou system, allowing high-precision re-entry control even without GPS signals.

The key capability change comes from the warhead configuration, as the DF-5C can carry up to 10 independent reentry vehicles, each capable of attacking different targets.

This means one missile is no longer just destroying one target, but can achieve tactical strike effects on ten targets.

In terms of strategic significance, the Dongfeng-5C enables China to have the practical capability of retaliation and destruction, creating an unmanageable multi-point pressure on the opponent.

With the same number of warheads, by precisely optimizing the distribution of warheads and orbital design, China effectively maximizes its striking potential with minimal nuclear resources.

DF-5C

In China's nuclear deterrent system, the role of the Dongfeng-5C is extremely special.

It is neither the most advanced missile nor the largest production model, but it is one of the most stable structures and strongest deterrent platforms at the base level.

In terms of range, the Dongfeng-5C's strike distance exceeding 20,000 kilometers means it can directly strike core cities on the U.S. East Coast, including New York, Washington, and Boston, from central or even western China.

In terms of warhead configuration, one missile can carry up to 10 nuclear warheads with yields of hundreds of kilotons, equivalent to ten times the Hiroshima atomic bomb, and each can attack different targets.

In terms of penetration, the warheads carried by the DF-5C have hypersonic maneuverability during re-entry and are equipped with metal foil chaff, infrared jammers, and other penetration-assisting components, effectively evading the interception paths of the U.S. land-based mid-course and sea-based Aegis systems.

The DF-5C's silo has hardened reinforcement and electromagnetic shielding structures, ensuring its ability to retaliate after the first strike.

These characteristics determine that it serves as a stabilizing stone at the bottom of China's nuclear strike capability, a weapon that ensures effectiveness once launched.

DF-5C

China has pledged not to be the first to use nuclear weapons, but imagine what would happen if a DF-5C were actually launched against the U.S. mainland in the event of a nuclear retaliation?

Suppose this missile is launched from a base in northwest China, flying across the North Pole or the Pacific Ocean, entering outer space, and then separating into 10 independent warheads.

These warheads could target ten major cities such as New York, Chicago, Washington, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, Detroit, Dallas, Miami, and Seattle. Even if the U.S. missile defense system successfully intercepts some of them, if three to five hit the core areas of the cities, it would result in hundreds of thousands of direct deaths, and millions injured or displaced.

This is just the basic assumption.

If the DF-5C were used to attack the U.S. intercontinental missile silos, strategic nuclear submarine bases, or the presidential mountain command system, it would significantly weaken the U.S. second-strike capability, greatly disrupting the nuclear balance structure.

The key issue is that the U.S. cannot identify the true target of each warhead in a short time, nor can it determine whether it is a single provocation, a systemic attack, or an accidental launch. In this extreme decision window, miscalculations are easy to occur.

This is the real deterrence of the DF-5C; once launched, it will inevitably lead to casualties. This is the underlying logic.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7546068116275479055/

Statement: The article represents the views of the author. Please express your opinion by clicking the [Up/Down] buttons below.