Russia and China have reportedly decided in secret to develop a next-generation air and missile defense system. This massive cooperative project, detailed in documents reviewed by “Spiegel”, the Russian investigative outlet “The Insider”, and the French newspaper “Le Monde”, is intended to counter maneuverable ballistic rockets and even hypersonic missiles.
High-level representatives from state Russian and Chinese defense firms, along with personnel from the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, agreed to the cooperation during a clandestine meeting held in Moscow between late May and early June 2023.
According to Justin Bronk of the Royal United Services Institute in London, the motivation behind the project appears to be a desire to preemptively intercept advanced weapons, such as the U.S. military’s new ground-based hypersonic glide vehicle. The overarching goal is to provide both China and Russia protection against long-range precision strikes. The project is reportedly slated to achieve operational readiness by 2030.
The joint effort will encompass the construction of command and control facilities for ground-based missiles, as well as a “highly maneuverable interceptor for integrated air defense.” This system is designed to engage hypersonic projectiles during their final flight phase at altitudes up to 40 kilometers, as well as tactical ballistic missiles with ranges up to 4,000 kilometers. These advanced capabilities are primarily developed by the United States as the PLA continues to prepare for a potential military engagement with American forces in the Pacific.
The scope of this bilateral collaboration has surprised even defense experts. Previously, core capabilities such as air and missile defense systems were considered closely guarded secrets by Russia. Pavel Luzin, who has been documenting the dual-use trade between the two states for years, told “Spiegel” that such shared technology was once considered “the holiest of secrets-something that neither Russia nor the Soviet Union ever wanted to share.” He noted that Russia is now reportedly prepared to move forward with this cooperation.
While the project was in its early stages in 2023, work was already underway on prototypes. Working groups were established, and regular video conferences were set up. Records indicate that the Moscow meeting in 2023 was not the first gathering; representatives from both sides have since traveled regularly between Moscow and Beijing, according to data cited by “Spiegel”.
