China Tests Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missile, Drawing Backlash From Pacific Neighbors

China carried out an uncommon test of a submarine-launched ballistic missile in the Pacific Ocean on Monday, prompting sharp criticism from New Zealand and Australia, both of which said the move threatened regional peace and stability.

A People’s Liberation Army Navy submarine fired a missile carrying a dummy warhead toward international waters in the Pacific, according to Senior Capt. Wang Xuemeng, a spokesperson for the PLA Navy. Wang described the launch as part of China’s routine annual military training and said other nations were notified beforehand, adding that the operation followed international law and was not aimed at any specific country.

Beijing did not disclose which missile type was used. China operates two submarine-launched ballistic missiles, the JL-2 and JL-3, with the JL-3 capable of reaching the continental United States from waters near China’s coast. The country’s primary ballistic-missile submarine fleet consists of six Type 094, or Jin-class, vessels.

Pacific Nations Voice Concern

New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said the missile landed within the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone, an area established under a 1986 treaty that China partially signed onto in 1987. Peters called the test “unwelcome and concerning” and said Pacific nations have no interest in the region being used as a missile testing ground.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong described the launch as destabilizing, linking it to what she called a rapid and insufficiently transparent Chinese military buildup. Peters also drew comparisons to a 2024 intercontinental ballistic missile test China conducted in the region, warning against letting such launches become normalized.

Context: Missile Tests Common Among Nuclear Powers

Submarine-launched ballistic missile tests are a routine part of military exercises for several nuclear-armed nations. The U.S. Navy conducted four Trident missile tests off Florida last September, while India and Russia each carried out similar tests within the past year.

China’s 2024 ICBM test near French Polynesia marked its first launch of that kind into open ocean waters in over four decades. A U.S. Defense Department report noted China typically conducts missile tests within its own borders, though it has also demonstrated the ability to launch multiple silo-based ICBMs in rapid succession. The report characterized such tests as part of Beijing’s approach to nuclear deterrence.