China says it successfully launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) carrying a dummy warhead into the Pacific Ocean.
Beijing’s Ministry of National Defense said the ICMB was launched at 08:44 local time (04:44 GMT) on Wednesday and “fell into the expected sea area”, adding that the test was “routine” and one of its “annual part of the training.
The type of missile and its flight path remained unclear, but Chinese state media said Beijing had “notified relevant countries in advance.”
Analysts said it was surprising that Beijing described the test as “routine” because the last such test took place in 1980.
China’s nuclear weapons tests are usually conducted domestically, and it has previously moved westward into the Taklimakan Desert in the Xinjiang region to test intercontinental ballistic missiles.
Therefore, this is believed to be the first time North Korea has launched an intercontinental ballistic missile into international waters since 1980.
“Unless I’m missing something, I think this is basically the first time in a long time that this has happened, and been announced as such,” wrote Ankit Panda, a nuclear weapons expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
He added that it was strange for Beijing to describe the test as “routine” and “annual” “because they neither do this kind of thing regularly nor every year”.
Japan’s Defense Ministry said its ships had not been damaged as of early Wednesday afternoon.
According to Japanese broadcaster NHK, Japan’s Defense Ministry said: “We will continue to collect and analyze information about the actions of the Chinese military and take all possible precautions for vigilance and monitoring.”
When China last conducted such a test – in May 1980 – the ICBM flew 9,070 kilometers and landed in the Pacific Ocean. That test involved 18 Chinese naval vessels and is still considered one of China’s largest naval missions.
U.S. defense analyst John Rich said China may use the test as a form of “posturing or signaling to the United States.”
While relations between Beijing and Washington have improved over the past year, China’s growing assertiveness in the region remains a sticking point.
Tensions rise between China and the Philippines Their ships have repeatedly collided in disputed waters. last month, Japanese fighter planes scrambled into space It previously accused a Chinese spy plane of violating its airspace, calling the move “completely unacceptable.”
Beijing’s assertion of autonomy for Taiwan is another source of pressure.
Taiwan’s Defense Ministry said earlier on Wednesday that China had recently been conducting “intensive” missile launches and other exercises. In the same statement, the Ministry of Defense said it had detected 23 Chinese military aircraft conducting “long-range missions” near Taiwan.
Beijing regularly sends ships and aircraft into Taiwanese waters and airspace in what analysts say is a “grey zone warfare” tactic designed to normalize incursions.
In July this year, China suspended nuclear arms control negotiations with Washington in retaliation for the US nuclear arms control negotiations. The United States continues to sell arms to Taiwan.
Last year, China Two PLA leaders were replaced The Rocket Force – the elite force that manages its nuclear arsenal – faces corruption charges.
In a report released last year, the Pentagon estimated that China has More than 500 operational nuclear warheads It has approximately 350 intercontinental ballistic missiles in its arsenal.
The report also predicts that by 2030, China will have more than 1,000 warheads.
