Australia protests China's 'destabilising' missile test

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Wednesday she raised concern over Beijing’s test of a nuclear-capable missile in the South Pacific, calling the launch “destabilising” in a meeting with her Chinese counterpart in Manila.

The remarks came a day after the envoy slammed China’s “dangerous conduct” following a clash between Philippine and Chinese sailors at a disputed shoal in the South China Sea.

A Chinese submarine fired the ballistic missile fitted with a dummy warhead earlier this month, reaching far into the Pacific Ocean.

“We have made clear publicly and directly to China that we regard the missile test as destabilising and we… put that directly to Foreign Minister Wang Yi in my discussions (with him) yesterday,” she told reporters on the sidelines of a meeting of Southeast Asian ministers in the Philippines.

“We want a region which is peaceful, stable and prosperous. We want a region where countries, all powers, including great powers, observe international law and, in particular, the law of the sea,” she said.

Australia has previously said it did not receive sufficient notice of the missile test and a dozen Pacific Island countries have denounced it for violating the region’s wish to remain free of nuclear weapons testing.

Monitors have said the rocket appeared to land in a patch of ocean somewhere between Solomon Islands, Nauru and Tuvalu.

Asked about Monday’s incident at Second Thomas Shoal, in which a Philippine sailor was allegedly struck on the head with a baton, Wong reiterated that Australia had “real concerns about behaviour that is destabilising and risky”.

On Tuesday, during a visit to a Philippine coast guard vessel, Wong announced the donation of “413 million pesos ($6.7 million) worth of cutting-edge drone technology and operator training to the Philippine Coast Guard”.