The United States announced on Tuesday that it had successfully tested a Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).

The missile, unarmed, was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base (California), said a statement from the US Air Force.

Equipped with a warhead capable of carrying a nuclear bomb in wartime, the missile traveled some 4,760 km before sinking at sea near Kwajalein Atoll (Marshall Islands).

This test had been postponed twice so as not to aggravate tensions around Ukraine and then Taiwan.

🇺🇸 USA


The US Air Force Global Strike Command conducted a test firing and launched a Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear payload from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.#USA #nucleaire #missile #UkraineRussiaWar pic .twitter.com/bzWRjUMb3U

– The freedman (@Fr_franchised) August 16, 2022

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Two postponements due to international conflicts

"This test is part of routine and periodic activities intended to demonstrate that the United States' nuclear deterrent is safe, reliable, and effective in the face of 21st century threats, and to reassure our allies," the Army said. American air.

“There have already been more than 300 such tests, and it is not due to current world events.

»

The test, scheduled for March, was postponed for the first time due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24.

Washington feared that Moscow would use this test to widen the conflict to other countries.

The second report took place in early August after Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, a city claimed by the Chinese authorities.

China took this trip badly and launched the most important military maneuvers in its history around Taiwan.

For five days, the army deployed warships, missiles and fighter jets, simulating a blockade of the island.

Faced with this attitude, the American army wanted to show their ability to be a “responsible nuclear power” by postponing the missile test.

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