By Gaurav Sharma

Beijing, Jan 23 (IANS): China's People's Liberation Army has carried out a mock intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) strike mission from an underground bunker at an undisclosed location.

The simulated strike mission was conducted against an imaginary enemy, according to the state media.

China Central Television (CCTV) did not disclose details on the location and time of the exercise.

The drill was a part of long-term survival training for the troops to ensure counterattack capability in case a war breaks out, the report said.

As China promises never to use a nuclear weapon first and will only use them in a counterattack, China's strategic missile storage facilities must be able to survive the first wave of a hostile nuclear strike, said Song Zhongping, a Chinese military expert.

Song told the Global Times that the underground bunkers were invaluable in protecting Chinese missiles from being destroyed and prepare for counterattacks.

He said the three generations of ICBMs could be the DF-5, DF-31 and DF-41, all of which were capable of striking targets more than 10,000 kilometres away with a deviation of less than a few dozen metres, carrying single or multiple thermonuclear warheads.

Song added that the DF-41, China's mysterious and most advanced ICBM, might make its public debut on October 1, the 70th anniversary of the People's Republic of China's founding.