In China's new ballistic missile test, the worries for Indo-Pacific region, Pg12

Key Highlights:

• China conducted its first-ever sea-based long-range Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) test in international waters on July 6.
• The missile, likely a Ju Lang 2 (JL-2) or Ju Lang 3 (JL-3), was launched from a submarine in the South China Sea.
• It carried a dummy warhead, covering 7,300 km and landing in the Southern Pacific Ocean, flying over several Exclusive Economic Zones.
• The test demonstrates China's improving nuclear capabilities and its progress in establishing a nuclear triad.

Detailed Insights:

• The missile landed within the South Pacific nuclear-free zone designated under the Treaty of Rarotonga, where nuclear testing is prohibited.
• This test is China's second ballistic missile launch in international waters since 1980, following a land-based ICBM test in 2024.
• China aims to showcase its enhanced second-strike capabilities and assert its great-power status in the Indo-Pacific region.
• While China maintains a no-first-use nuclear policy, evidence suggests a shift from a "minimum nuclear deterrent" to an "early warning counter-strike" posture.
• For India, the test highlights a widening strategic gap, necessitating the deployment of longer-ranged K-5 and K-6 missiles.
• India also needs to enhance its anti-submarine warfare capabilities and seabed domain awareness, especially in the Indian Ocean Region.
• The test complicates US missile defense planning and may prompt a refocus of US resources towards East Asia.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM): A long-range missile capable of delivering nuclear warheads over distances exceeding 5,000 km.
• Nuclear Triad: The capability of a nation to deliver nuclear weapons by strategic bombers, intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs).
• No-First-Use Policy: A pledge by a nuclear-weapon state not to use nuclear weapons as a means of warfare unless first attacked by an adversary using nuclear weapons.
• Second-Strike Capability: The ability of a nuclear power to absorb a first nuclear attack and still be able to retaliate with nuclear weapons.