China’s nuclear weapons tests are mostly conducted domestically, and it has previously test-fired ICBMs toward the western Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
This is believed to be the first time North Korea has launched an ICBM into international waters since 1980.
“Unless I missed something, this is virtually the first time something like this has happened, and it seems like it’s been a long time since it’s been announced,” Ankit Panda, a nuclear weapons expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told X.
He added that it was odd that Beijing described the tests as “routine” and “annual.” “They don’t do this kind of thing routinely or annually.”
Japan’s Defense Ministry said there was no damage to the ship as of early Wednesday afternoon.
“We will continue to collect and analyze information on the movements of the Chinese military and take all possible precautions in terms of alertness and surveillance,” the Ministry of Defense said, according to Japanese broadcaster NHK.
The last time China conducted such a test – in May 1980 – the ICBM flew 9,070 km and landed in the Pacific Ocean. The test involved 18 Chinese naval vessels and is still considered one of China’s largest naval missions.
John Ridge, a U.S. defense analyst, said China may have conducted the test as a form of “posturing or signaling to the United States.”
While relations between China and Washington have improved over the past year, China’s increasingly aggressive stance in the region remains a challenge.
Tensions have been rising as Chinese and Philippine vessels repeatedly clash in the disputed waters. Last month, Japan scrambled fighter jets after accusing a Chinese spy plane of violating its airspace, a move it called “completely unacceptable.”
