Defense Minister Wellington Koo (顧立雄) says that the intercontinental ballistic missile China test-launched from a submarine on July 6 was most likely the nuclear-capable JL-2. That came during an interview at the Legislature on Wednesday, July 8.

China and Russia recently commenced the Joint Sea-2026 military exercise, during which a Chinese nuclear submarine test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile carrying a training warhead into the open waters of the Pacific. International observers have been trying to determine whether the missile was a JL-2 or the more modern JL-3.

Koo said that Taiwan’s armed forces monitored the launch through a joint intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance system and multiple intelligence source channels. Based on the military’s assessment, the missile was most likely the JL-2, which is a part of China’s nuclear deterrence mechanism.

Koo said that although the missile did not pass through Taiwan’s Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ), this action had a destabilizing effect on regional peace and stability and confirmed that the Chinese Communist Party is a ‘troublemaker’. He added that many countries have already condemned the launch, and Taiwan will continue to maintain cooperation with like-minded nations to jointly monitor the regional security situation.