China carried out on international waters intercontinental test Rockets ballistic missile (ICBM). This is the first cancer test in more than 40 years. Beijing says these were routine tests, not aimed at any specific country or target, we read on the BBC website. In addition, China is said to have informed other governments about the tests. At the same time, however, Japan claims it was not warned and, along with Australia and New Zealand, has expressed doubts.
China has conducted a unique text. They haven't done this in decades
Analysts point out, however, that these were unusual tests, because Beijing usually conducts them on its internal territory, not in international waters. “If the US had done it, it would not be unusual, but in the case of China it is unheard of,” Ankit Panda, a nuclear missile analyst, told the BBC. He added that China is undergoing a “nuclear modernization” that has already resulted in significant changes, and the missile tests only confirm the new approach.
Ankit Panda, however, believes China did not intend to send a political message. Nevertheless, “it is, without a doubt, a reminder that the nuclear dynamics in Asia are changing rapidly.” Other analysts see it differently. Leif-Eric Easley, a professor of international relations at Ewha Women's University in South Koreabelieves that this was another signal to the United States and its allies in the region.
– The message for Washington is that direct intervention in the conflict in the Taiwan Strait would mean exposing the US to attack – said Easley. And towards the United States' allies – he added – it is a provocation and a demonstration of China's ability to fight on several fronts at once.
Indo-Pacific Region Troubles: China's Missile Tests Didn't Help
Japan has expressed serious concerns about China's tests. Australia has said outright that they were destabilizing and has demanded an explanation from Beijing. New Zealand has said they were unwelcome and disturbing.
The tests could increase tensions in the disputed Indo-Pacific region, and analysts say China has demonstrated its greater long-range nuclear capabilities. The U.S. warned last year that China was building a nuclear defense capability, and its 5,500-km-range missiles put the United States within its reach. Beijing's nuclear arsenal is still estimated to be less than a fifth of that of the U.S. and Russia. China has also long maintained that nuclear weapons are only for deterrence.