TOKYO - The Japanese government said Monday it was informed by China of a test launch of a ballistic missile and conveyed "serious concern" about Beijing's intensifying military activities.
China's official Xinhua News Agency reported that a strategic nuclear-powered submarine "successfully launched a strategic missile" at noon on Monday. The missile carried a dummy warhead toward the high seas of the Pacific falling precisely within its designated target area.
The Chinese missile likely fell outside Japan's exclusive economic zone, a Japanese government source said.
The missile test launch notification came at around 11:30 a.m. a day after the Chinese side informed the Japan Coast Guard of designated sea areas regarding possible falls of space debris, including Japan's EEZ in the Pacific south of the western prefecture of Wakayama, the government said.
Similarly, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Monday Canberra was also informed of the missile test, calling the launch "destabilizing to the region."
Xinhua said "the operation was in accordance with international law and practice, targeting no specific country or objective."
Tokyo-Beijing ties have been strained after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's parliamentary remarks last November suggesting an attack by China on Taiwan could prompt a response by Japan's Self-Defense Forces in support of its ally, the United States.
