Is China preparing to unveil its new HQ-29 ballistic missile defence system?
Footage on social media of what appears to be the new Chinese HQ-29 ballistic missile defence system on the move has triggered speculation that it could make its debut at a
military parade in Beijing in September.
The system has yet to be officially acknowledged but is believed to be more advanced than known Chinese missile shields including the
HQ-19 , which has been likened to the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) system.
A video clip posted on Tuesday to Chinese social media shows the six-axle transporter erector launcher – a vehicle used to transport and launch missiles – carrying two large missile canisters, each about 1.5 metres (4.9 feet) in diameter.
According to the post, the vehicle was headed towards Beijing and it was suggested that could be in preparation for its first public appearance, at a military parade on September 3 marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
The system seen in the video looks much like the transporter erector launcher spotted on a road in March, which military watchers at the time speculated was the new HQ-29.
Screenshots of the clip posted last week have been widely circulated on social media, reigniting discussion about China's multilayered ballistic missile defence shield – of which the HQ-29 is seen as the missing top layer.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
32 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
Beijing's liaison office ‘angered' by Angel Chong's Miss Hong Kong bid, sources say
Officials from Beijing's liaison office in Hong Kong were 'angered' by a young district councillor's brief attempt to compete in a beauty pageant and cautioned her political party over it, according to sources who viewed her move as falling short of the expected conduct of a public officeholder. The Post also learned that the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) and the government chose to downplay the saga while resisting any investigation into whether Angel Chong Nga-ting's actions constituted misconduct so as to avoid 'renewing the public's attention' on the incident. The 24-year-old, the city's youngest district councillor, was spotted attending the first round of interviews for the Miss Hong Kong Pageant organised by broadcaster TVB on Tuesday. She announced her withdrawal a day later, saying she wanted to protect the district council's image. Chong had reportedly brought her assistant in the Sai Kung District Council along to the interview, who distributed cold drinks to reporters on site. The assistant was also seen providing Chong's contact information as a councillor to journalists. Multiple insiders from the DAB said Chong had not informed the party of her decision to join the beauty contest. 'The liaison office was angry at her move and also the party for allowing the incident to happen,' a DAB source said.
South China Morning Post
37 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
China's No 4 official joins in mourning death of Hong Kong tycoon Charles Ho
China's No 4 politician was among senior Beijing officials and other heavyweights who sent wreaths to the wake for Hong Kong tobacco and media tycoon Charles Ho Tsu-kwok. Advertisement The ceremony for Ho, former chairman of the Sing Tao News Corporation who died at the age of 75 earlier this month, was held at the Hong Kong Funeral Home in North Point on Saturday. Ho became a standing committee member of China's top political advisory body, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in 1998 and controlled Sing Tao News before selling his shares in 2021. Wreaths were sent by Wang Huning, the fourth-most senior official in the Communist Party of China and who oversees the CPPCC, and Vice-Premier Ding Xuexiang, who chairs the leading work group for Hong Kong and Macau affairs. Xia Baolong, the director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs office, the office itself and Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu also sent wreaths. Advertisement Retired central government officials, including ex-top political adviser Yu Zhengsheng, former vice-premier Liu Yandong and Liao Hui, who served as director of the HKMAO, sent flowers under their names.
South China Morning Post
2 hours ago
- South China Morning Post
Why Israel's spy tactics against Iran have sparked fears in Taiwan
Israel's sweeping intelligence operations against Iran have jolted Taiwan's security community, raising concerns that Beijing could adopt similar tactics to cripple the island's leadership or critical infrastructure. As assassinations and sabotage rattle Tehran, analysts in Taipei warn that Beijing's infiltration of Taiwan is no longer a purely political threat, and it might be laying the groundwork for high-stakes covert warfare. In recent months, Taiwan has seen a surge in espionage cases implicating not only retired and active-duty military personnel, but also aides to senior government officials and lawmakers from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). The breadth and depth of these cases have sparked concerns that Beijing's intelligence network has already penetrated the island's political and defence systems. 'What Israel has done to Iran – through a combination of precision, infiltration, and intelligence dominance – is something Beijing could try to replicate,' said Max Lo, executive director of the Taiwan International Strategic Study Society. 'The difference is, this time Taiwan may be the one under the microscope.' According to experts, Taiwan's vulnerabilities lie not only in its geographic proximity to mainland China but also in decades of cross-strait social and cultural exchange, which have enabled mainland Chinese intelligence operatives to blend in and recruit more easily.
