What's behind China's launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile
China has test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile into the Pacific Ocean in a rare occurrence, adding to tensions in the region where multiple countries have overlapping territorial claims
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — China test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile into the Pacific Ocean on Wednesday in a rare occurrence, adding to tensions in the region where multiple countries have overlapping territorial claims and both Beijing and Washington seek to project their influence.
The launch was part of routine training by the People’s Liberation Army’s Rocket Force, which is in charge of conventional and nuclear missile operations, and was not aimed at any country or target, the Defense Ministry said in a statement.
The ICBM, carrying a dummy warhead, landed in a designated area in the sea, the ministry said, without specifying where exactly.
China rarely tests ICBMs out in international waters, with some experts tracing the last such deployment back to May 1980, when Beijing launched a DF-5 missile into the South Pacific. Usually, the PLA test-fires ballistic missiles in China’s remote Xinjiang region or in the Bohai Sea.
