China is preparing for one of the most anticipated and politically charged military events in recent years. On September 3, in Tiananmen Square, China will celebrate the 80th anniversary of the victory over Japan in World War II with a spectacular military parade that is not only a ritual of historical remembrance but also a message to the entire world to be prepared for the war of the future.
President Xi Jinping and several foreign leaders and officials, including Vladimir Putin, will attend the ceremony. The Russian president's presence is reported to have prompted several European ambassadors to consider defecting from the event, fearing it would contribute to the Kremlin's international legitimization amid the ongoing war against Ukraine.
China’s New Weapons Send a Message
The parade will last about 70 minutes and will see dozens of formations parading down Chang'an Avenue in the heart of Beijing. Xi, as supreme commander of the armed forces, will review the troops before the march through the square. More than 10,000 military personnel, more than 100 aircraft, and hundreds of ground vehicles will be involved.
The official theme is the celebration of peace and international justice, but the real content will be the demonstration of the People's Liberation Army's ability to fight high-tech wars in new strategic domains: cyberspace, outer space, electronic and hypersonic warfare. According to leaked information from Chinese dress rehearsals and official sources, more than 100 models of weapon systems, all domestically produced and already in operational service, will be on display.
Enter the Anti-Ship Missiles
Among the most anticipated weapons are the new YJ (Ying Ji, "Eagle Shot") series anti-ship missiles, designated YJ-15, YJ-17, YJ-19, and YJ-20. These are systems designed for a specific mission: to neutralize large US naval units, particularly aircraft carriers, the heart of American supremacy in the Pacific. These carriers are part of China's A2/AD (Anti-Access/Area Denial) strategy, i.e., the creation of "defensive bubbles" that can prevent or make it too risky for enemy fleets to access the South China Sea, the Taiwan Strait, and the Western Pacific.
China has developed a wide range of anti-ship missiles in recent decades, often starting with Soviet technologies, and then surpassing them with indigenous designs since the YJ-8 in the 1980s, derived from French Exocets. With the new series, China is aiming for a further qualitative leap, combining stealth, hypersonic speed, and artificial intelligence.
The exact specifications are top secret, but from general tests and expert analysis, some distinguishing features come into focus. First: speed of at least Mach 4-6, thus in the range of hypersonic missiles, with terminal maneuvering capability to evade anti-missile systems. Second: range of hundreds of kilometers. Third: combined flight profile, with the cruise phase at medium-high altitude, followed by grazing descent to the sea to reduce the possibility of interception. Fourth: multiple guidance with Beidou satellite, active radar, and IR sensors. Fifth: launch versatility, adaptable to aircraft, ships, submarines, and mobile land platforms, increasing possible saturation against enemy fleets. Put together, these weapons signal to the United States that aircraft carriers are no longer untouchable, and the Pacific is no longer an "American sea."
Going Hypersonic
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