Jul 7, 2026 – 4.12pmTokyo | After years of quietly expanding its military footprint across the Indo-Pacific, China suddenly got boisterous on Monday with a high-profile exercise to test a new ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead.While Beijing quickly argued the operation was aimed at deterring a US-Russia-style nuclear arms race and preventing conflict in the Asia-Pacific, it instead inflamed tensions and drew instant rebuke from Australia and the US.Subscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? Fetching latest articles
China missile test just the noisy part of quiet military build-up
With an estimated range of more than 10,000 kilometres, the JL-3 missile can threaten targets across continental US from a submarine not far into the Pacific.
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