The United States was sending a clear message to China on Tuesday when it shot down a mock intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) over the Pacific Ocean, military experts said.
“The SM-3 Block IIA interceptor test could be seen as a response to China launching two ‘aircraft carrier killer’ missiles into the South China Sea,” Beijing-based military expert Zhou Chenming said.
He was referring to reports that the People’s Liberation Army fired a DF-26B and a DF-21D from separate sites into the sea in August, as covered by the South China Morning Post at the time.
Last week it was reported that a former colonel with the Chinese military, speaking at a meeting in October, said the Chinese missiles successfully hit a moving ship close to the Paracel Islands.