China Tests Missile From Nuclear Submarine, Alarming Regional Powers

Beijing. On Monday, China tested a missile towards the Pacific Ocean from a nuclear submarine. Neighboring countries Japan, Australia, and New Zealand have expressed serious concern over this move by China.

According to China's state news agency Xinhua, a missile with a dummy warhead was launched into international waters for practice from a People's Liberation Army Navy nuclear submarine at 12:01 PM local time. Although it was stated that the missile fell in a predetermined sea area, China has not publicly disclosed its exact location.

Xinhua described this test as a regular program under China's annual military exercises, claiming it was not targeted against any specific country or objective. However, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong confirmed that China had informed Australia before the test and stated that such a move could negatively impact regional stability.

Speaking at a press conference in Suva, the capital of Fiji, she commented that China's rapid military expansion is not sufficiently transparent, and regional countries lack the expected clarity regarding its objectives. Therefore, Australia views such tests as destabilizing actions, she said.

The Japanese government has also stated that it received advance notice of the missile test. Tokyo has expressed 'serious concern' over China's increasing military activities and urged reconsideration of such tests. According to Japan, China had informed the Japanese Coast Guard on Sunday that potential space debris could fall near Japan's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). According to the Japanese news agency Kyodo, the missile fell outside Japan's EEZ.

Meanwhile, New Zealand's Foreign Minister Winston Peters also stated that although New Zealand was informed a few hours after the launch, he described the incident as unacceptable and concerning. In his statement, he mentioned that New Zealand and other Pacific island nations do not want to see China turn the South Pacific into its missile testing ground.

China previously tested an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in 2024, and at that time, the test was also seen as an indication of China's rapidly growing military capabilities.