"We urge the international community to express their concerns over China's move, which would have negative impact on peace in the Taiwan Strait and in the region," said cabinet spokesman Cheng Wen-tsang.

"The satellite shown-down showed that China has expanded its arms race to space and that its so-called 'peaceful rise' is merely an illusion," he said.

The English-language daily Taipei Times expressed similar sentiment in an editorial, saying Beijing is following Pyongyang's lead in the misuse of space technology.

"This incident demolishes the suggestion that the Chinese military and its Communist Party bosses can behave in an accountable, let alone responsible, manner in military and space affairs," it said.

"In the wake of the North Korean nuclear test, this missile test suggests that Beijing has, if anything, taken on Pyongyang has a role model."

The paper urged the US to denounce China "in the strongest terms" as the latter is "playing the Pentagon for a pack of fools" by launching the missile without informing it.

China still considers Taiwan part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary, despite their split in 1949 after a civil war.

Washington said China had fired a missile to destroy an orbiting weather satellite last week, making it only the third country after the former Soviet Union and the United States to shoot down an object in space.

If the test, which according to US magazine Aviation Week and Space Technology took place on January 11, is confirmed, China could now theoretically shoot down spy satellites operated by other nations.

China declined to confirm the incident Friday but foreign ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao told journalists "there's no need to feel threatened about this," adding that China was "not going to get into any arms race in space."

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