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Taiwan mistakenly launches supersonic missile at China

by IBNS 30 Jun 2016, 10:20 pm

Taipei, Jul 1 (IBNS) : Taiwans navy "mistakenly" fired a supersonic anti-ship missile towards China from its naval base on Friday, media reports said quoting officials.

However, it did not cause any injuries, and landed in waters in the direction of mainland China.

The domestically developed Hsiung-feng III (Brave Wind) missile flew about 75 kilometers (45 miles) before plunging into waters off Penghu, a Taiwanese-administered island group in the Taiwan Strait.

The navy said it was not immediately clear how the missile, which has a range of 300 kilometers, had been launched, but suggested it could have been due to human error.

When asked by reporters if the incident would affect relations with Beijing, Vice Admiral Mei Chia-hsu said it had been reported by the navy to the defence ministry of the island.

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, who’s also head of the military, is currently overseas.