US Carries out Missile Test after Chinese Drills amid Taiwan Tensions – Al-Manar TV Lebanon

As the US and China are locked in tension over a host of major issues in particular Taiwan, Washington says it carried out an intercontinental ballistic missile test to show “the readiness of US nuclear forces.”
The test “provides confidence in the lethality and effectiveness of the nation’s nuclear deterrent,” a US military statement said Tuesday.

The nuclear-capable Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile traveled about 4,200 miles (6760 km) and was launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

The US, which has by far the biggest arsenals of nuclear warheads, said about 300 such tests have been carried out previously and that it was not the result of any specific global event.

Tuesday’s ICBM test had been delayed “to avoid escalation” during China’s military drills near Taiwan earlier this month.