In short:

On Wednesday, China test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) with a dummy warhead into the Pacific Ocean as part a "routine" training plan.

Fiji, Australia, Palau and New Zealand have all criticised the test, urging Beijing not to ramp up military tensions across the region. 

What's next?

New Zealand and Australia have both signalled that they've shared information about the test with partners across the region, including in the Pacific.

Fiji, Australia, Palau and New Zealand have all criticised China's ballistic missile test in the Pacific Ocean, urging Beijing not to ramp up military tensions across the region. 

On Wednesday, China test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) with a dummy warhead into the Pacific as part of what its defence ministry called a "routine" training plan.

It didn’t say exactly where it landed.

But the President of French Polynesia Moetai Brotherson told AFP the missile hit the sea near the Marquesas Islands, more than 12,000 kilometres from the Chinese mainland. 

Test 'not directed at any country', China says

China has insisted the test was "not directed at any country or target" but it has still generated considerable unease in the Pacific.  

On Thursday, Fiji’s President Ratu Wiliame Katonivere referred to the "unilateral" test while speaking at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

"We urge respect for our region, and call for cessation of such action under principle four of the Ocean of Peace, as was endorsed by the Pacific leaders in Tonga last month," he said.

"Our statement reinforces the Pacific's peaceful example to uphold international law and urge others to refrain from actions that undermine peace and security in the blue Pacific."

First Chinese missile launched into Pacific Ocean in decades

While China has regularly tested long-range missiles, experts say it appears to be the first time China has launched a missile into the Pacific Ocean in more than four decades.

They also say the test appears intended to deliver a clear warning to the US and its allies about China's nuclear weapon capabilities. 

Palau's President Surangel Whipps told the ABC that China owed the region an explanation over the test. 

"For a country that says it wants to promote peace, this doesn't seem like a peaceful activity," he said.

"Launching a missile that goes half way across the Pacific all the way to Kiribati… that's half way across the Pacific. That means it could strike any one of us in the Pacific."

However, the US response to the missile launch has been measured, with a Pentagon spokeswoman saying that China gave the US "advance notification" of the test, which she called a "good thing". 

"This was a step in the right direction and it does lead to preventing any misperception or miscalculation," she said.  

Australia and New Zealand's response

New Zealand and Australia have both signalled that they've shared information about the ballistic test with partners across the region, including in the Pacific. 

New Zealand's Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters called the test an "unwelcome and concerning development".

"Pacific leaders have clearly articulated their expectation that we have a peaceful, stable, prosperous, and secure region. As part of the region, New Zealand strongly supports that expectation."

Treasurer Jim Chalmers also confirmed that he raised the ballistic test with his Chinese counterparts during high level meetings in Beijing.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said Australia had "sought an explanation" from China about the test.

"The launch comes in the context of China’s rapid military build-up, which is taking place without the transparency and reassurance that the region looks for from great powers," they said. 

The Pentagon has estimated that China has completed construction of at least 300 ICBM silos, and that it already has more than 500 operational nuclear warheads.

Analysts say the US maintains a stockpile of approximately 3,700 nuclear warheads.