China has test launched a long range ballistic missile with a dummy warhead into the Pacific Ocean, just hours after Australia signed a new defence agreement with Fiji.
Beijing described the launch as a routine military exercise, but the test drew criticism from countries across the Indo-Pacific region, including Japan, New Zealand and Australia.
Australian officials said Beijing had notified Canberra of the launch plans only hours before the test was carried out.
Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles said Australia was concerned by developments that could threaten regional stability.
Marles said Australia is “very concerned about any actions which undermine the stability, the peace, and security of the Pacific”.
Governments across the Indo-Pacific, including New Zealand, Japan and Papua New Guinea, were informed by Chinese authorities of planned military drills at sea on Monday.
New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters described the missile test as an “unwelcome and concerning development” and said Wellington would discuss the issue with regional partners.
Japan said it had “strongly urged” China to reconsider the launch after receiving notice of the test 90 minutes before it took place.
China insisted the missile launch was part of routine military training and was not aimed at any country.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said: “The related launch activity was conducted in a safe, regulated, and professional manner, and we hope that certain countries will refrain from overinterpreting them.”
Speaking in the Fijian capital, Suva, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the launch came “in the context of a rapid military build-up by China” and risked “destabilising” the region.
Wong was in Fiji as Australia formally signed the Ocean of Peace Alliance with Fiji, marking the Pacific nation’s first defence alliance and Australia’s fourth after agreements with the United States, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the treaty would be backed by more than $1 billion in Australian spending over the next decade on tackling transnational crime as well as improving health and infrastructure in Fiji.
Albanese described the agreement as “one of the most significant endeavours” Canberra had undertaken with any country.
Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka called the treaty a “defining moment” in relations between the two countries and said it represented a “very significant elevation of our bilateral relationship”.
Responding to questions about possible opposition from Beijing, Rabuka said China would “welcome the understanding”.
“It does not threaten Fiji’s relationship with China nor Australia’s relationship with China,” he added.
The development comes as Australia continues efforts to deepen security ties across the Pacific amid growing Chinese influence and military expansion in the region.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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