China Puts US Allies On Edge With Rare Missile Test In Pacific

China fired a submarine-launched ballistic missile into the Pacific Ocean on Monday, sparking concerns among longtime U.S. allies in the region.

A Chinese military official called the test part of a routine “annual military training schedule,” but Australia and New Zealand expressed concern that China’s actions disturbed the peace in the Indo-Pacific region, CNN reported. It is not yet known what type of missile China used in the test.

“ launched a strategic missile carrying a dummy warhead toward relevant high seas of the Pacific Ocean, which landed precisely within the designated waters,” Wang Xuemeng, spokesperson for the PLA Navy told CNN. “The operation was in accordance with international law and practice, targeting no specific country or objective.”

China’s navy has two types of submarine missiles: the JL-2 and the JL-3. The JL-3 can fly far enough from waters near China to reach the mainland United States, according to CSIS’ ChinaPower Project.

The White House, Department of War, State Department and U.S. Pacific Command each did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

“New Zealand considers this an unwelcome and concerning development. We, like our neighbors in other Pacific countries, have no interest in China using the South Pacific as a testing site for missile capability,” New Zealand’s Minister of 🌐Foreign Affairs, Winston Peters, said, according to CNN.

Peters said China informed New Zealand of its plans to launch the missile into the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone early Monday morning, per the outlet.