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The Pentagon has issued a disturbing warning: new ballistic missiles could reach US shores. What do we know about the DF-27, Beijing's latest missile?
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) Rocket Force is using a new type of ballistic missile capable of reaching the West Coast of the United States. This is the latest warning issued by the Pentagon regarding China's military capabilities, which sheds light on the DF-27, a system developed by Beijing that, according to the annual report of the Department of Defense to the US Congress, has an estimated range of between 5,000 and 8,000 kilometers. For the first time, an official graphic representation has publicly confirmed that this missile covers the entire Indo-Pacific region and large parts of the US territory, marking a qualitative step in China's strategic posture.
Chinese missiles that worry the US
According to USNI News, the DF-27 represents the first anti-ship system of its kind, capable of threatening naval units at ranges greater than China's current arsenal of supersonic and hypersonic missiles. Beijing has never openly acknowledged the existence of this capability, but leaks of classified documents had fueled suspicions as early as 2023. Previously, the Pentagon had only confirmed the development of the missile, without attributing to it a clear role in naval warfare. The inclusion of the DF-27 in the operational framework instead indicates a progressive expansion of "area denial" strategies, designed to hinder or neutralize the high-seas naval forces of potential adversaries, primarily the United States.
Over the past decade, China has made waves with anti-ship ballistic missiles, such as the DF-21D, dubbed the “carrier killer,” and the DF-26, dubbed the “Guam killer,” as well as the DF-17 hypersonic system designed to strike moving ships. These weapons allow Beijing to threaten land and sea targets along the first and second chains of Pacific islands, where most of the US and its allies’ forces are concentrated.
Not surprisingly, Washington has responded by beefing up its missile defenses, including creating a dedicated network to protect Guam. According to Naval War College analyst Andrew Erickson, China’s intercontinental ballistic missile deployment has “fundamentally changed the maritime balance,” introducing a new form of naval power that could redefine the modalities of potential conflict in the Pacific and beyond.
Characteristics of DF-27
"Taken together, China's ASBM missiles, now potentially extended to intercontinental ranges with the DF-27, pose a potent threat to surface ships throughout much of the Pacific. They effectively constitute a new form of naval power," Erickson continued.
The DF-27 is one of three hypersonic cruise missiles currently under development around the world. For information, the first to enter flight tests was North Korea's Hwasong-16B in March 2024, followed by Russia's Oreshnik in November of the same year.
China continues to be considered a world leader in the development of hypersonic glide vehicles, with the capabilities of its intercontinental-range glide vehicles demonstrated during tests that have caused particularly significant concerns in the Western world.
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