TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The US and 40 other countries have urged the global community to follow stricter advance-notification procedures when conducting long-range missile launches.
In a joint statement issued Tuesday, the signatory countries said recent missile tests in the Pacific did not follow standard procedures for advance launch notification. “Conducting nuclear-capable ballistic missile tests without sufficient advance notice and detail is dangerous and disrupts the peace and security of relevant nations in proximity to these tests,” the statement said.
The statement applies to intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and space launch vehicles. It called for at least 24 hours’ advance notice and information including the missile class, launch window, launch area, and planned direction.
“Countries should also provide clear notices for airmen and mariners consistent with international standards to reduce risk, including in expected impact or landing areas,” the statement said.
Though the statement did not name any specific country, China fired a submarine-launched ballistic missile carrying a training warhead from the South China Sea into the Pacific Ocean in July, per USNI News. Taiwan’s National Security Council Secretary-General Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said at the time that the action was “a provocation that destabilizes the Indo-Pacific.”
Taiwan Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) welcomed the joint statement. China has continued to bolster its military capabilities and use gray-zone tactics in an attempt to unilaterally alter the status quo in the Taiwan Strait and Indo-Pacific region, Lin said, per the foreign ministry.
“These actions not only threaten Taiwan but also pose serious challenges to the security and peace of neighboring countries and the region as a whole,” he said.
The foreign ministry emphasized that maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and Indo-Pacific has become a global consensus and serves the common interests of all parties.
