'No force can shake this great nation': President Xi leads spectacular ceremony to mark 70 years of Communist rule in China and unveils top-secret hypersonic DF-17 missile for the first time

12:13 • 01.10.19
Event

China showed off its military prowess along with a ton of new technology during a parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the found of the Communist Party on Wednesday.

The bristling display was presided over by Xi Jinping, wearing a grey jacket in echoes of Mao Zedong, the founder of modern China. Standing in an open-topped car, he watched from the Gate of Heavenly Peace, from where Mao proclaimed the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the Daily Mail reports.

The parade is China's first large-scale display since 2015 and was used to showcase the leaps that its military - which has the second-largest budget in the world behind the US - has made in that time.

On display was the formidable new Dongfeng 41 intercontinental ballistic missile, which is believed to be one of the most powerful nuclear weapons on the planet.

Analysts believe the missile is capable of ranging anywhere in the US and can hit targets within just 30 minutes of being fired with 10 nuclear warheads that are capable of striking multiple targets simultaneously.

Also unveiled for the first time was the Dongfeng-17, a hypersonic nuclear missile that is also though to carry multiple warheads, fly faster than conventional weapons to evade defence systems, and at a lower altitude to avoid detection before impact.

“No force can ever shake the status of China, or stop the Chinese people and nation from marching forward,” Xi said as he inspected rows of vehicles, troops and gleaming missiles. 

The People's Liberation Army boasts a standing army of more than 2 million active personnel - the largest of any military in the world

Chinese soldiers rehearse before the start of a parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China in Beijing on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019

Chinese troops in military vehicles roll past Tiananmen Square during a military parade in Beijing on Tuesday

People's Liberation Army soldiers man military vehicles during a parade in Beijing on Tuesday

People's Liberation Army vehicles are equipped with the Hong Qi 16, or HQ-16, a Chinese medium-range air defense missile system

 Xi waves from his limo as he reviews the honor guard near Tiananmen Square in Beijing on Tuesday

 The grand military parade and mass pageant was meant to project national strength to an audience at home and abroad

 People's Liberation Army soldiers are seen above in front of a sign marking the 70th anniversary of the People's Republic of China

People watch a military parade along the perimeter security established around the official ceremony in Tiananmen Square in Beijing

 With tensions in her home region still running high, Hong Kong executive Carrie Lam (center) attended the festivities in Beijing on Tuesday

 

The Chinese premier reviewed a military honor guard, waved to revelers, and observed the new weaponry on display in Beijing

 

People's Liberation Army soldiers hold up flags as they are transported in humvees during the parade in Beijing on Tuesday

 People's Liberation Army soldiers man military vehicles during a parade in Beijing on Tuesday

People's Liberation Army vehicles are equipped with the Hong Qi 16, or HQ-16, a Chinese medium-range air defense missile system

 

People's Liberation Army shows off more of its military hardware during the celebratory parade in Beijing on Tuesday

The image above shows military vehicles carrying DF-41 intercontinental ballistic missiles, which China claims can strike anywhere on earth

 

Soldiers of the People's Liberation Army man military vehicles during Tuesday's parade in Beijing

The late Mao Zedong (depicted in the portrait above) is considered the founder of the modern state of China

 

China's celebrations are aimed at highlighting the country's economic and military transformation

 

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