News Report: Does China Have New 10-Warhead Long-Range Missile?

A Chinese DF-5B Ballistic Missile during a military Parade

Chinese defense officials are heralding a major change in the country’s nuclear strategy after flight-testing a new long-range missile variant that can carry 10 warheads. The DF-5C missile was flown earlier this month, using 10 multiple independently-targetable reentry vehicles (MIRVs).

Central China’s Taiyuan Space Launch Center hosted the flight test, while US intelligence agencies monitored the testing of the dummy warheads.

Commander Gary Ross, Pentagon spokesman, told the Washington Free Beacon that, "The [Defense Department] routinely monitors Chinese military developments and accounts for PLA capabilities in our defense plans." 

This test is noteworthy as it indicates that China’s military arsenal may be increasing its number of warheads, which for decades has been estimated at a relatively low (when compared to the thousands stockpiled by Russia and the United States) 250.

News Report: MIRVs to Make India’s 'Agni' ICBM More Potent

Agni 5 (File Photo)

After the successful test launch of the intercontinental ballistic missile Agni 5, India will now work on improving the warhead. The next version with MIRVs will be called Agni 6.

New Delhi (Sputnik) – India’s defense research body, Defense Research Development Organization (DRDO) has begun work on the Agni 6 missile. It will be an intercontinental ballistic missile with an improved warhead capable of maneuvering or intelligent re-entry vehicles to defeat the enemy’s ballistic missile shield.

Agni 6 will have the capacity to drop multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles (MIRV) bombs whose numbers are expected to beat the adversary’s defense systems. 

India on Monday had successfully test fired the Agni 5 from the Wheeler Island off the Odisha coast. This was the final delivery version that was tested in the mobile-on-road configuration. The ICBM is now ready for the user trials by the Indian defense forces and with a range of over 5000 km, it is India’s longest range surface-to-surface missile. 

India’s Strategic Forces Command has till now inducted the missiles Agni 1, Agni 2 and Agni 3 and will soon induct the Agni 4 and Agni 5. 

The Agni 5 has been developed keeping China in mind as its ambit covers most parts of that country. 

The Agni series of missiles has been developed by DRDO and is part India’s expensive and time-consuming quest for an integrated guided missile defense system.

This story first appeared on Sputnik & is reposted here with permission.