Australia warned that China will test nuclear missile in South Pacific within the next 24 hours

By KYLIE STEVENS, SENIOR BREAKING NEWS REPORTER, AUSTRALIA Published: 04:52, 6 July 2026 | Updated: 04:58, 6 July 2026 Australia has been warned that China is set to fire a nuclear-capable missile with a dummy warhead in the South Pacific within the next 24 hours.  China gave briefings about the testing to governments on Monday. Foreign Minister Penny Wong was one of several people given advance warning. 'In the next 24 hours a new missile with a dummy warhead will be fired by China in the South Pacific,' a high-level source told The Australian.  The exact time and location of the missile launch are unknown. Another source claimed the move came in retaliation after Anthony Albanese and Fiji's Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka signed the Ocean of Peace Alliance on Monday.  The alliance includes mutual defence obligations, stating an armed attack on any of the parties within the Pacific 'would be dangerous to each other's peace and security as well as the security of the Pacific'.  The document also opens up the alliance to other Pacific nations.  Australia has been warned that China is set to fire a nuclear-capable missile with a dummy warhead in the South Pacific within the next 24 hours 'The parties may, by unanimous consent, invite any other Pacific state in a position to further the purposes and principles of this treaty and to contribute to the security of the Pacific,' it reads.  Australia has mutual defence pacts with the US, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea, called the PukPuk treaty, which comes into effect on Wednesday.  In an attempt to bolster Australia's key relationships in the region, Albanese will also host the leaders of PNG and Tonga in Brisbane at the final State of Origin game on Wednesday.  Following his visit to Fiji, Albanese will head to the Solomon Islands to meet with his counterpart Matthew Wale after the two nations agreed to further discussions on a security deal. While visiting Honiara on Tuesday, Albanese will participate in the Solomon Islands' 48th Independence Day celebrations. The trip follows the sealing of a long-awaited $500 million deal with Vanuatu, called the Nakamal Agreement. Under the agreement, Port Vila agreed to close the door on foreign military bases in its territory. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.