China fires a missile into the South Pacific

In early July 2026 China test-launched a submarine-based long-range ballistic missile that flew into the South Pacific, with a dummy warhead landing in a designated stretch of Pacific waters. Beijing notified New Zealand and other countries hours beforehand, and its military described the launch as routine annual training.

Foreign Minister Winston Peters said New Zealand considered the test an unwelcome and concerning development, and argued the region should not let such launches become routine. The missile came down inside the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone created by the Treaty of Rarotonga, the test coincided with Australia and Fiji signing a new defence pact, and Japan also objected. It follows a similar Chinese Pacific missile test in 2024.

Part of a wider pattern

The missile test is one of a run of episodes that have strained New Zealand's relationship with China. The claims below are attributed to those who make them, and China rejects the overall characterisation:

• Tasman Sea live-fire (Feb 2025) — PLA Navy drills at short notice forced dozens of Australia–NZ flights to divert; NZ and Australia called the lack of warning unsafe, China said the drills were lawful.
• Cook Islands deal (Feb 2025) — the Cook Islands signed a strategic partnership with China without showing New Zealand the text first; NZ paused about $18m in funding, saying it breached their free-association consultation. More →
• Foreign interference — the SIS names China as the leading source of interference against New Zealand, and a 2022 report alleged Chinese overseas "police stations" (Beijing denied any operate here). Stuff Circuit's 2024 documentary *The Long Game* traced alleged CCP influence over decades — including a donations case in which a court accepted the donors had deceived electoral officials, though the convictions were later overturned on a technical point about personal benefit.
• Jian Yang — the former National MP (2011–2020) had studied at a PLA academy and taught at a Chinese military-intelligence language school, undisclosed on his residency papers; he denied ever being a spy.
• Corrections snooping (2023) — a probation officer who had worked for Jian Yang was sacked for unauthorised access to the files of 43 Chinese offenders; he denied spying and Corrections established no motive, but PM Christopher Luxon asked intelligence agencies to check whether the information could be used for foreign interference.
• Pounamu black market — strong overseas demand, especially from China, is fuelling theft and illegal export of greenstone (a taonga owned by Ngāi Tahu); the first successful export prosecution, in 2026, involved smuggling to China, though the thieves themselves are often local. More →