Xi Jinping deploys missiles capable of hitting targets in the United States for the first time: impact on the US electoral dynamics

On September 25, 2024, for the first time in 44 years, China tested an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead, targeting international waters. The launch took place from the island of Hainan, a leading center for deploying Chinese missiles and drones and a PLA spy center.

The intercontinental missile flew over the Solomon Islands, Nauru, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Samoa, Fiji, Vanuatu, and Guam, the core of the United States island chains.

An unnamed missile, believed to be either a Dongfeng-31 or Dongfeng-41 (range 8000 km to 15000 km), crashed in waters near French Polynesia after flying about 11,000 km.