China's disarmament envoy rejects US criticism of missile test notification

At the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva on August 11, China's Ambassador for Disarmament Affairs Li Chijiang rejected a joint statement led by the US that criticized China's July submarine-launched intercontinental ballistic missile test. Li said China is not a member of the Hague Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation and therefore not bound by its notification requirements, but that China had nonetheless notified the US and others in advance as a goodwill measure. He accused the US of political manipulation and double standards, and said the US has no standing to lecture China given its own record of frequent ICBM tests and nuclear buildup.