China has unveiled ambitious plans for a nationwide missile defense network, positioning itself as a formidable player in global defense technology. This development comes in response to the United States’ announcement of the ‘Golden Dome,’ a multi-layered missile interception system aimed at protecting American territory from airborne threats. The Chinese system, detailed in a July 2025 academic paper published by Modern Radar, a research unit of the state-owned China Electronics Technology Group Corporation, integrates space-based sensors, satellites, airborne systems, sea and ground radars into a unified network. The platform offers real-time early-warning capabilities, enabling high-speed data integration to detect and track complex missile threats. It also employs QUIC (Quick UDP Internet Connections), a next-generation encrypted data-transport protocol, to ensure secure, low-latency communications across distributed nodes. According to the paper, the system can simultaneously track up to 1,000 incoming missiles, leveraging data from satellites, ground-based and over-the-horizon radar, optical sensors, maritime platforms, airborne early-warning aircraft, and orbital reconnaissance assets. A Guangdong-based commentator, ‘Humanity Blues,’ noted that China’s system has already undergone testing and delivery to the military, while the US Golden Dome remains in the framework design stage. The commentator emphasized that China’s hypersonic missile system complements its defense network, making it a robust contender in the global missile defense landscape. Meanwhile, the US Golden Dome, led by Space Force General Michael Guetlein, targets operational status by 2028. However, integrating sensors, interceptors, and command networks across military and commercial space assets poses significant challenges. At the 2025 Defense in Space Conference (DISC) in London, experts warned that the West is lagging behind China and Russia in space-linked missile defense. Gabriel Elefteriu, a senior fellow at the Council on Geostrategy, highlighted that space has become a warfighting arena, with China’s missile tracking and orbital infrastructure positioning it as a leader in the next conflict. Michelle Howard, a strategic policy adviser at D Group, stressed that China’s focus on network dominance and data fusion could dictate the early stages of any conflict. Justin Keller, chief architect at DGS Space, urged the US and its allies to abandon incrementalism and focus on operationalizing systems swiftly to maintain deterrence. In addition to its missile defense efforts, China is investing in long-term technological dominance through the Nantianmen Project, a state-backed science fiction concept exploring future aerospace power. While fictional, Nantianmen has attracted significant attention for its blend of strategic messaging and mass appeal, signaling China’s intent to lead in space competition.