Why neighbors are concerned about China’s ICBM test after four decades?
Last Updated on September 27, 2024 7:43 am
China on Wednesday test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in the Pacific Ocean after more than four decades. The Chinese side has said that they conducted this test after informing the concerned countries. However, Japan claims that China has not told them anything about this.
Neighboring countries are worried about China’s missile test. Expressing their concern in this incident, they protested.
Regarding the launch of the ICBM in international waters, China said it was a “routine” test and the missile was not launched targeting any country or target.
ICBMs are believed to be capable of striking at a distance of more than five thousand five hundred kilometers. If true, China will be able to hit the US mainland with its missiles. That is why China’s neighboring countries are worried.
They claimed that it was not an annual exam. Because China had previously tested its last ICBM in the 1980s. In addition, China normally tests such weapons in the Taklamakan desert in the Xinjiang region within the country. For this reason, western analysts are looking at the incident of throwing ICBMs outside the country differently.
In this regard, nuclear missile analyst Ankit Panda told the BBC, “Such tests are not unusual for other countries, including the United States, but it is part of nuclear modernization for China.” They have already brought about enough changes. No doubt, this will be a stark reminder for the region and the United States. They would think that the nuclear dynamic in Asia is changing rapidly.’
Japan has expressed serious concern that it has not received any notice from China. Australia and New Zealand have also expressed concern over the incident. “This move is destabilizing and increases the risk of miscalculation in the region,” Australia said. That is why they have asked for an explanation from Beijing.
New Zealand, on the other hand, called it ‘unwelcome and development related’.
China’s missile test is another “wake-up call” for the United States and its allies, said Leef-Eric Easley, a professor of international relations at Ewa Women’s University in South Korea.
According to him, ‘The message to Washington is that direct intervention in a conflict across the Taiwan Straits will put the US at risk of attack. At the same time, it is a provocative test… that demonstrates China’s ability to fight on multiple fronts.”