Summarised by Centrist
Newly released documents show New Zealand diplomats privately warned that China’s long-range missile launch over the Pacific in 2024 was anything but routine despite Beijing’s public reassurances at the time.
The Inter Continental Ballistic Missile test (ICBM) took place near French Polynesia.
“We do not want to see this test repeated,” officials noted at the time, adding that China was “mischaracterising” a development, that was “not routine.”
The launch marked China’s first long-range missile test over international waters in more than 40 years.
The missile, believed to be a Dong Feng-31, landed in a zone designated nuclear-free since 1986. Pacific nations, many still scarred by Cold War-era testing, received no advance warning.
New Zealand, Australia, the US and others were notified the night before with only vague details, according to separate Australian government documents.
Wellington formally questioned Beijing’s timing and choice of location. “Why did it conduct the test at this time, and why did it choose to terminate the missile test in the South Pacific?” officials asked.
China insisted no one was misled and claimed the test followed international law.
Diplomatic observers say the test was a signal to Washington and the wider region that China is prepared to project military power far beyond its shores.
Harvard University researcher Hui Zhang said, “The rare public ICBM test seems to have been specifically aimed at dissuading Washington from using nuclear weapons in a potential conflict across the Taiwan Strait.”
