China missile test criticized by Australia, New Zealand, Japan | War Stories

Countries have raised concerns about China’s military after testing weapons from the Pacific Ocean.

China has tested missiles from a nuclear-powered submarine that landed in “designated waters” in the Pacific Ocean, state news agency Xinhua said, drawing criticism and concerns from Japan, Australia and New Zealand.

China’s navy test-fired a long-range missile at 12:01pm (04:01 GMT) on Monday from one of its nuclear-armed submarines in the South Pacific, Xinhua reported.

Xinhua said the test was a “routine exercise” for China’s annual military exercises and was not aimed at any specific target.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong confirmed that China had informed the government of plans to test a cruise missile in the Pacific but said the move was “unsettling” the region.

“Australia has been clear that the proposed test is related to the rapid military buildup with China, which lacks transparency and assurance of the region’s expectations,” Wong told reporters at a press conference in the Fijian capital, Suva.

The Japanese government said it had been informed of the missile launch and urged China to reconsider.

“We expressed our deep concern at the increased activity of the Chinese military,” the government said, adding that Japan’s coast guard had been informed on Sunday by Chinese officials about debris falling in Japan’s exclusive economic zone.

The New Zealand government said it was informed of the planned launch just hours after it happened.

“New Zealand considers this unacceptable and developmentally related.” “We, like our neighbors in the Pacific, have no interest in China using the South Pacific as a testing ground for its missile capabilities,” Foreign Minister Winston Peters said in a statement.