PLA missile test drew flak from US & Phil.; Beijing: routine drills

Nations criticise China's People's Liberation Army's test-launch of a strategic missile by submarine in the Pacific Ocean.

The US says China's weapons build up is a great concern to the world, calling its actions the "opposite" of curbing nuclear proliferation.

In Beijing, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reiterates the test is part of a routine drill and relevant countries need not overinterpret the action.

On Monday, the PLA Navy launched a strategic missile by a submarine, carrying a dummy warhead toward the high seas of the Pacific Ocean -- landing precisely within the designated waters.

The US State Department issues a statement saying while Washington is committed to preventing nuclear proliferation, China is "doing the opposite."

It says Beijing's rapid and opaque weapons build-up is of great concern to the region and the world, urging Beijing to engage in meaningful arms control discussions and commit to a regularised notification arrangement for all intercontinental-range ballistic missile and space launches.

Manila also condemns China's missile test, calling it a reckless display of force which disregarded the security of smaller countries and the fragile ecological environment on which local people depend.

It calls on China to stop turning the high seas into an arena to intimidate other nations.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, after signing a mutual defence treaty the previous day with the Pacific island nation Fiji, visited the Solomon Islands on Tuesday.

There, he criticises China's missile test as a provocative act that undermines regional stability.

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Matthew Wale describes China as a good friend, but missile tests are not the actions from a friend.

In Beijing, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Mao Ning says China insists on following the path of peaceful development and the test activities were not targeted at any specific country, noting that China had already notified relevant countries in the South Pacific region prior to the drill.