China fires submarine missile in second Pacific test

China announced Monday it had "successfully conducted" a submarine-launched strategic missile test, marking Beijing's second demonstration of nuclear delivery capabilities in the Pacific since September after notifying Australia, New Zealand and Japan of the imminent launch. State-run Xinhua News reported that the People's Liberation Army Navy carried out the operation in the South Pacific.

"The Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy on Monday successfully conducted the test launch of a strategic missile by a submarine," Xinhua reported. The launch represents the second strategic weapons test Beijing has conducted in four months, following an intercontinental ballistic missile firing into the Pacific Ocean on Sept. 25, 2024 — the first such ICBM demonstration since 1980.

Regional governments express concern

Maritime authorities in Canberra, Wellington and Tokyo confirmed they received advance warning of the nuclear-capable exercise. Japan urged Beijing to "rethink" the test and conveyed its "serious concern," according to Kyodo News.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation cited maritime intelligence firm Starboard, which reported that Beijing deployed two satellite tracking vessels to the Pacific to monitor the ballistic missile trajectory. The vessels positioned themselves to capture telemetry data from the underwater launch platform, the firm noted.