China test-launches a ballistic missile in a South Pacific nuclear-free zone

China’s test-launch of a ballistic missile in a South Pacific nuclear-free zone underlines renewed friction over regional security and compliance with longstanding nuclear restrictions. According to Xinhua, the missile was launched Monday at 12:01 p.m. from one of China’s nuclear-powered submarines, carrying a dummy warhead. The Chinese Ministry of Defense said the drill was part of routine annual training, not directed at any country or target, and Xinhua noted it complied with international law and practice. It follows another Pacific test two years earlier, when China fired an intercontinental ballistic missile with a dummy warhead for the first time in decades. Australia, Japan and New Zealand criticized the launch, with New Zealand saying it had been informed of the planned hours and that the missile was fired into the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone established by the 1986 Treaty of Rarotonga. The same day, Australia and Fiji signed a new mutual defense treaty aimed at countering Chinese influence, while Japan urged Beijing to rethink testing so missiles would not fly over Japan.