The vehicle-mounted DF-17 was among the different weapons that were displayed on Tuesday during a big military parade. The military parade was led by President Xi Jinping for marking the 70th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China.
A few analysts have termed the new nuclear missile a threat to the regional stability as its speed results in lesser time for the enemy to determine whether it should fire a nuclear weapon in response. The speed and the fact that this missile relies on different independently-maneuverable re-entry vehicles for the sake of delivering warheads renders the missile not only difficult to detect but also quite tricky to intercept.
The DF-17 also features hypersonic glide vehicle technology that allows it to fly at quite a lower altitude before it delivers the warhead. As per an analysis by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the missile can strike the continental US within a time frame of 30 minutes.
