This US Air Force handout photo shows an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile launching during an operational test at 1:13 a.m. Pacific Time, October 2, 2019, at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. Photo: Public Domain
Pacific states at the centre of a brewing nuclear geo-political storm are being urged to rely on diplomacy and unite with smaller states to hold the U.S and China accountable.
An Asia-Pacific and nuclear policy expert is calling on smaller states to unite and says we are on the cusp of a new missile age in the Indo-Pacific.
There's been an increase in missile testing in the region and the U.S. military's newest long range hypersonic missile system could soon be deployed to Guam.
RNZ Pacific's Eleisha Foon spoke to Stanton Senior Fellow in the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Ankit Panda who says smaller states aren't completely powerless and must avoid being caught in the crossfire of a possible nuclear conflict.
