- Mozambique vote: no suspense but some disillusion
- Austrian rapper channels anti-racist rage in Romani hip-hop songs
- Ohtani magic powers Dodgers over Padres in MLB playoff thriller
- Five of the best: Pakistan-England Test thrillers
- Man sets arm on fire as marches across US mark Gaza war anniversary
- Vietnam's young coffee entrepreneurs brew up a revolution
- Trump rallies at site of failed assassination: 'Never quit'
- Too hot by day, Dubai's floodlit beaches are packed at night
- Is music finally reckoning with #MeToo?
- Fans hail Trump's 'guts' as he returns to site of rally shooting
- Lebanon state media says 'very violent' Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Guardians maul Tigers, miracle Mets rally in MLB series openers
- Lebanon state media says Israeli strikes hit south Beirut
- Miami on track for MLS record points after win in Toronto
- Madrid beat Villarreal but Carvajal suffers knee injury
- Madrid beat Villarreal to move level with Liga leaders Barcelona
- Monaco take top spot in Ligue 1 with win at Rennes
- French rugby player on rape charge whistled but 'serene' on return
- Madrid beat Villarreal to level Liga leaders Barca
- Thuram treble fires Inter past Torino and up to second
- 'Fight': defiant Trump jets in to site of rally shooting
- Toddler among 3 dead in migrant Channel crossings
- Mexico City's new mayor sworn in with pledges on water, housing
- Israel on alert ahead of Hamas attack anniversary
- Guardians maul Tigers in MLB playoff series opener
- Macron criticises Israel on Gaza, Lebanon operations
- French rugby player whistled but 'serene' on return amid ongoing rape case
- Kovacic stars as Man City sink Fulham to get title bid back on track
- Retegui hat-trick fires five-star Atalanta to hammering of Genoa
- Heavyweights Australia, England off to World Cup winning starts
- Visiting UN refugee agency chief decries 'terrible crisis' in Lebanon
- Spinners come to party as England defeat Bangladesh at T20 World Cup
- Search continues for missing in deadly Bosnia floods
- Man City sink Fulham to get title bid back on track
- France's Auradou whistled on Pau return in Perpignan loss amid ongoing rape case
- A 'forgotten' valley in storm-hit North Carolina, desperate for help
- Arsenal hit back in style after Southampton scare
- Thousands march for Palestinians ahead of Oct 7 anniversary
- Hezbollah heir apparent Safieddine out of contact after strikes
- Liverpool stay top of Premier League as Arsenal, Man City win
- In dank Tour of Emilia, Pogacar shines in rainbow jersey
- DR Congo launches mpox vaccination drive, hoping to curb outbreak
- Trump returns to site of failed assassination
- Careless Leverkusen held to Bundesliga draw
- O'Brien's 'superstar' Kyprios posts landmark win on Arc weekend
- Toddler crushed to death in migrant Channel crossing
- Liverpool suffer Alisson injury blow
- Habosi helps Racing beat Vannes before Auradou's playing return
- Thousands march in London in support of Palestinians, 1 year after Oct 7
- Israel readying response to Iran missile attack
China insists nuclear stance defensive after 'routine' ICBM launch
China said on Thursday that its launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) into the Pacific Ocean was "legitimate and routine", insisting that its nuclear stance remained defensive after the rare test prompted an outcry from countries in the region.
Beijing announced the trial on Wednesday -- its first such test in four decades -- saying that the missile was carrying a dummy warhead.
The launch sparked protests from countries in the region, with China's neighbour Japan saying it had not been given advance notice and Taiwan expressing "solemn condemnation".
Beijing's defence ministry said on Thursday the test was "a legitimate and routine arrangement" that aimed to "test our weapon and training performance".
"China's nuclear policy is very stable, consistent and predictable," ministry spokesman Zhang Xiaogang told a news conference in Beijing.
"We strictly follow a nuclear policy of no first use of nuclear weapons and pursue a nuclear strategy of self-defence," he said.
He said China does not seek an "arms race" and had "promised not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear weapons states or weapon-free zones".
"China will continue to keep its nuclear capabilities at the minimum level required for national security," Zhang said.
- International outcry -
Japan said it had not been given advance warning of the launch. Taiwan, the self-ruled island that Beijing claims as its territory, expressed "solemn condemnation".
Australia said it was seeking "an explanation", while New Zealand called the launch "an unwelcome and concerning development".
French Polynesia President Moetai Brotherson said "the missile fell not far from... the Marquesas Islands", an archipelago that is part of its exclusive economic zone.
"The Chinese authorities previously notified their French counterparts of this test," the French High Commission said in a statement, adding that France would make its position on the test known.
The Pentagon also said the United States received "some advanced notification of this ICBM test", describing the notification as "a step in the right direction" that would help prevent "misperception or miscalculation".
China's military released imagery of the missile on Thursday that showed the projectile soaring into the air in a plume of smoke from an undisclosed location.
Analysts said the imagery suggested the launch could be of a Dongfeng-31 AG intercontinental ballistic missile, unveiled during a military parade in 2017.
- Growing arsenal -
Beijing has stepped up its nuclear development and boosted defence spending in recent years.
The Pentagon warned last October that China was developing its arsenal more quickly than the United States had anticipated.
China held more than 500 operational nuclear warheads as of May 2023 and is likely to have more than 1,000 by 2030, the Pentagon said.
One analyst told AFP Beijing was "clearly trying to... signal that 'we are strong'".
"It sends a signal to the US and its allies... that China has the military ability to react in the event of any escalation of tensions between the United States and China," said Benjamin Ho, assistant professor at Singapore's S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies' China Programme.
burs-mjw/oho/pbt
L.Miller--AMWN