China's PLA conducts rare public test launch of intercontinental ballistic missile

BEIJING/TAIPEI — China said on Wednesday (Sept 25) that it successfully conducted a rare launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile into the Pacific Ocean, a move likely to raise international concerns about the country's nuclear build-up.

The ICBM, carrying a dummy warhead, was launched by the People's Liberation Army Rocket Force at 8.44am Beijing time (0044 GMT) on Wednesday and 'fell into expected sea areas,' the Chinese defence ministry said in a statement, adding that it was a 'routine arrangement in our annual training plan' and not directed at any country or target.

China 'informed the countries concerned in advance,' according to a separate Xinhua report, which did not clarify the path of the missile or where in the 'high seas of the Pacific Ocean' it fell.

The launch "effectively tested the performance of weapons and equipment and the training level of the troops, and achieved the expected goal," Xinhua reported.

A Japan Coast Guard official said it had received a navigation warning from China on Monday for 'space debris' in three zones in South China Sea and the Pacific north of the Philippines' Luzon island, and in the South Pacific, on Wednesday.

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The official declined to confirm whether it was related to the reported missile launch.

It is rare for China to fire long-range missiles into the sea as it prefers to test them unannounced in isolated provinces such as Inner Mongolia, analysts said.

The PLA Rocket Force, which oversees the country's conventional and nuclear missiles, has been tasked with modernising China's nuclear forces in the face of developments such as improved US missile defences, better surveillance capabilities, and strengthened alliances.

Some analysts, however, say the