China

Chinese Nuclear Submarine Test-Launches Long-Range Missile

Is this test a vital deterrence strategy or a destabilizing provocation threatening Pacific security?

Published JUL 7

China Fires Sub-Launched Missile Into Pacific

Story

Above: People's Liberation Army (PLA) JL-3 intercontinental-range submarine in Beijing on Sept. 3, 2025. Image credit: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg/Getty Images

The Facts

China's PLA Navy test-launched a strategic missile carrying a dummy warhead from a nuclear submarine at 12:01 p.m. on Monday, landing in designated Pacific waters. The navy described the test as a routine part of annual training, saying it complied with international law.
CNN
The Wall Street Journal
XINHUA
The test marked China's first submarine-launched ballistic missile test since the 1980s and its first known launch from a nuclear-powered submarine. Analysts identified the missile as likely the JL-3, with an estimated range exceeding 10,000 kilometers.
The Mainichi
CNN
The Times (UK)
The U.S. State Department said it monitored the launch of the unarmed intercontinental-range ballistic missile, stating that "Beijing's rapid and opaque nuclear weapons buildup is of great concern to the region and the world."
The Manila Times
The Washington Post
New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said the missile landed within the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone, established by the 1986 Treaty of Rarotonga, calling the test "an unwelcome and concerning development." China signed the treaty's protocols in 1987.
CNN
Financial Times
Sky News
Australia's Foreign Minister Penny Wong confirmed China had notified governments in advance but called the launch "destabilizing." Japan said it was notified roughly 90 minutes before the test and strongly urged Beijing to reconsider.
The Chosun Daily
Al Jazeera
Financial Times
The missile test coincided with Australia and Fiji signing a mutual defense pact and with the U.S.-hosted RIMPAC naval exercise involving more than 30 nations. China and Russia also began annual joint naval exercises off Qingdao on the same day.
The Manila Times
The Washington Post

Sources Split

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The Spin

Pro-China narrative

China's submarine-launched missile test is a genuine leap in strategic deterrence. The JL-3's 10,000-kilometer range ensures a credible second-strike capability that prevents any nation from gambling on a preemptive attack. Strengthening this nuclear triad actually reduces the risk of conflict in the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea by eliminating dangerous miscalculations.

Loong of the east on X

Global Times

Anti-China narrative

China's missile test rattled the entire Pacific region, and the so-called advance notice was a deceptive warning framed as a "space debris" alert — hardly the transparency Beijing claims. Australia called the launch destabilizing, New Zealand flagged it as a direct threat to the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone, and Japan raised alarms over potential airspace violations. This is a provocative escalation.