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China has revealed details of its new nuclear weapon which is said to be 200 times more powerful than the bombs that devastated Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The DF-5B missile is said to have a range of 7,500 miles, meaning it is capable of reaching Europe and the United States from launch sites in China.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV shared details of the upgraded intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on Monday, June 2, with details previously having been closely guarded. The Chinese-made DF-5B ICBM represents significant progress in the country's missile technology from the earlier DF-5 model developed during the Cold War, according to Global Defence News.
Its Multiple Independently Targetable Reentry Vehicle (MIRV) technology enables a single missile to carry and release a number of nuclear warheads capable of striking different targets across a wide area.
The original DF-5 was equipped with only one warhead, but the DF-5B can reportedly carry up to 10, significantly boosting its strike capability.
Chinese journalist Li Zexin wrote on X that DF-5B can carry a nuclear warhead of three to four million tons of TNT, which he said is equivalent to 150-200 times the nuclear bombs the US dropped on Japan in World War Two. The same source said the ICBM has a 500 metre (0.3 mile) accuracy.
The Hiroshima bomb was about 15 kilotons (15,000 tons) while Nagasaki's was 25 kilotons (25,000 tons), according to the World Nuclear Association.
Each DF-5B warhead operates independently, making interception harder for missile defence systems.
It isn't known why Beijing chose to release details of its "first generation strategic ICBM", but it may be a bid to demonstrate its military might to deter possible or perceived threats.
China raised concerns in September last year when it revealed it had carried out a rare ICBM launch in the Pacific Ocean.
The ICBM was carrying a dummy warhead and was launched by the People's Liberation Army Rocket Force. It "fell into expected sea areas", according to a statement issued by the Chinese defence ministry.
It was a "routine arrangement" in China's "annual training plan" and not directed at any country or target, the ministry said.
The Pentagon said China had notified it of the test launch, welcoming the notice as "a step in the right direction" in reducing the risk of "misperception and miscalculation", according to a report from Reuters.
China's PLA Rocket Force oversees the country's conventional and nuclear missiles. It has been tasked with updating China's nuclear forces in the face of recent developments, including improved US missile defences, enhanced surveillance capabilities and alliances.
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