Australia, Solomon Islands vows stronger ties, criticize China's Pacific missile test

SYDNEY — Australia and the Solomon Islands pledged on Tuesday to deepen bilateral ties and criticised China's test of a ballistic missile fired from a nuclear-powered submarine in the Pacific, a move experts said could sharpen strategic rivalry in the region. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who met Solomon Islands Prime Minister Matthew Wale in Honiara on Tuesday, said Canberra did not want to see actions that could undermine peace and security in the Pacific. "There is no doubt that this is a provocative act by China, which does destabilise the region," Albanese said during a joint media briefing with Wale after their meeting in the Solomons' capital.

Albanese said China did not follow the standard procedure of giving 48 hours' advance notice before the test, but the "real concern" was that the missile was fired from a nuclear-powered submarine. A nuclear submarine of the People's Liberation Army Navy launched the missile carrying a dummy warhead toward international waters in the Pacific at 12:01 p.m.

(0401 GMT) on Monday, the official Xinhua News Agency said. The missile