DND, AFP alarmed over Chinese ballistic missile launch in Pacific

MANILA – The Department of National Defense (DND), along with the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), on Tuesday expressed concerns over the launching of a ballistic missile by a Chinese submarine in the South Pacific on July 6.

In a statement, DND spokesperson Arsenio Andolong called the Chinese test firing “a reckless display of military power that shows little regard for smaller countries and the fragile ecological systems that sustain their people.”

“This launch serves no peaceful purpose and is a calculated act of taunting and provocation against those who reject China’s illegal expansionism and coercive conduct,” he said.

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Andolong said the Philippines stands with its Pacific partners in calling on China to act responsibly and stop turning shared seas into arenas of intimidation and imperial ambition.

Earlier, China’s People Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) said one of its submarines launched a “strategic missile carrying a dummy warhead towards the relevant high seas of the Pacific Ocean, which landed precisely within designated waters.”

It also said the launch was a routine part of China’s annual military training schedule.

In a separate statement, AFP spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea (WPS) Navy reservist Rear Admiral Roy Vincent Trinidad, likewise expressed concern over the PLAN’s recent test launch of an intercontinental strategic missile from a nuclear-powered submarine into the Pacific Ocean.

“While noted as part of an annual training routine, such a demonstration of advanced strategic nuclear capability compounds existing regional anxieties. In line with the DND and national government pronouncements, the AFP maintains that peace, stability, and adherence to international law must guide all state actions in the Indo-Pacific,” he said.

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Trinidad said the AFP remains committed to protecting the Philippines’ sovereignty and sovereign rights in the WPS as the 10th anniversary of the 2016 Arbitral Victory approaches on July 12,2016.

“We call for transparency, restraint, and a cessation of actions that escalate tensions or threaten the rules-based international order,” he added. (PNA)

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