China’s navy announced on Monday that it had successfully carried out a strategic missile test over the Pacific Ocean, following warnings from regional nations that Beijing was preparing to launch an intercontinental ballistic missile.
“At 12:01 pm on July 6, a strategic nuclear submarine of China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy successfully launched a… strategic missile carrying a training simulation warhead into the relevant high seas of the Pacific Ocean, accurately landing in the designated sea area,” spokesperson Wang Xuemeng said in a statement posted on a navy WeChat account.
“This missile test launch is a routine arrangement of China’s annual military training, and relevant countries were informed in advance,” Wang said.
The test took place on the same day China and Russia were scheduled to begin their annual joint naval drills near Qingdao, a key naval base and coastal city in eastern China.
Authorities have not confirmed whether the missile launch formed part of the joint military exercises.
Earlier on Monday, officials in Papua New Guinea and New Zealand disclosed that China had notified them in advance of a planned missile launch into the Pacific.
“Yes, China has briefed me. I was personally called by the Chinese ambassador,” Papua New Guinea Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko said when asked if he had been warned.
A New Zealand government source also told AFP China had alerted them about an upcoming intercontinental ballistic missile test.
However, neither official indicated the intended impact location of the missile.
The latest launch follows a similar test in September 2024, when China’s Rocket Force fired a dummy warhead into waters near French Polynesia. It marked Beijing’s first long-range missile launch over international waters in more than four decades.
Military analysts at the time identified the weapon as likely being one of China’s advanced Dong Feng-31 intercontinental ballistic missiles, which is capable of carrying a thermonuclear warhead.
The missile landed in a section of the Pacific covered by an international treaty establishing it as a nuclear-free zone.
Meanwhile, an internal document obtained by AFP last month revealed that New Zealand’s Defence Force expects China’s ballistic missile tests and increased naval operations in the Pacific to become a regular and long-term feature of the region.
