A Lowy Institute report indicates China's missile capabilities pose a growing threat to Australia, with new long-range and hypersonic weapons increasing Beijing's capacity for direct strikes. The report assesses China's military build-up, not its intentions, highlighting the need for informed public discussion.
Hypersonic weapons, traveling over Mach 5, are nearly unstoppable with current tech, posing a new arms race and reshaping military deterrence globally.
The Pentagon plans to acquire over 10,000 low-cost cruise missiles and up to 12,000 hypersonic weapons from emerging defense firms to rebuild US stockpiles depleted by recent conflicts, favoring speed and innovation over traditional contractors.
Senior Pentagon officials told a Senate committee that the US has limited defense against advanced missile systems from China and Russia, including no defense against hypersonic weapons or cruise missiles. They called for funding for the proposed Golden Dome missile defense program, estimated to cost $175-185 billion over the next decade. The program aims to expand ground- and space-based capabilities to counter threats from Beijing and Moscow.
Assistant Secretary of War for Space Policy Mark Berkowitz testified before the US Senate Committee on Armed Services that the United States currently has no means to defend against hypersonic weapons or advanced cruise missiles. He described the existing ground-based homeland defense system as very limited and specifically designed against small-scale rogue attacks from North Korea.
A senior Pentagon official told Congress that the US has "no defence against hypersonic weapons or cruise missiles" as President Trump's US$185 billion Golden Dome missile shield faces continued skepticism. The space-based interceptor system, targeted for operation by January 2029, is designed to counter Chinese and Russian missile arsenals, with the price tag increasing from an initial US$175 billion estimate.
Trump's $185 billion Golden Dome missile shield faces congressional scrutiny as a senior Pentagon official admits the US currently has no defence against hypersonic or cruise missiles. The assistant secretary of defence for missile defence told a Senate hearing the shield will strengthen deterrence by denying adversaries ability to achieve objectives through coercion, specifically targeting China as the 'pacing competitor'.
