China test-fired a ballistic missile from a nuclear submarine in the Pacific Ocean, underscoring its efforts to project power in the region.
A nuclear submarine conducted the launch with a dummy warhead at 12:01 pm Beijing time, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Monday.
This test was “a routine arrangement that has been communicated to relevant countries in advance,” and “is not directed against any specific country or target,” the report added.
Japan’s cabinet office said on X that Chinese maritime authorities notified its coast guard on Sunday that an area would be designated south of Cape Shionomisaki in connection with the reentry of space debris.
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The post added that China’s defense ministry told the Japanese embassy on Monday that the area was meant for a test-launch of a ballistic missile.
“Japan conveyed its grave concern over China’s increasingly active military activities and strongly urged China to reconsider conducting ballistic missile launch training in a manner that could threaten Japan’s security, including by allowing missiles to pass through Japanese airspace,” the post said.
Australian foreign minister Penny Wong told reporters that Australia was notified by Beijing about the test. The US Pacific Command did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
It is rare for China to test-launch a ballistic missile in the Pacific Ocean. In 2024, it fired off an intercontinental ballistic missile into the Pacific in what appeared to be its first such public test in some four decades.
The latest test comes as China steps up power projection in the region. It has been sending the Liaoning aircraft carrier further from its shores, and conducting patrols with Russia.
China displayed its most-advanced SLBM, the JL-3, at a military parade last year. That missile would allow China to target the continental US “from a protected bastion within the South China Sea,” former US Strategic Command Commander admiral Charles Richard told the Senate’s armed services committee in 2022.
Data from Starboard Maritime Intelligence, a New Zealand ship tracking company, showed three Chinese satellite-tracking vessels positioned throughout the Pacific.
Two vessels departed from China around June 25th and currently sit near the Federated States of Micronesia. The third departed China in early May and is currently at harbour in Fiji’s capital, Suva.
“These vessels carry large satellite dishes used to track missile launches and other space activity and are likely in the Pacific to collect data from the missile test China has reportedly notified regional governments to expect within 24 hours,” said Mark Douglas, an analyst for Starboard.
Noting the departure times of the Chinese vessels, he added, “This test has been planned well in advance. That said, the notification landing the day after Australia and Fiji signed the Ocean of Peace Alliance is interesting, to say the least.” - Bloomberg/Reuters
