Washington, (AFP) - Part of a Chinese space rocket that was launched last Sunday disintegrated over the Indian Ocean, upon its uncontrolled return to the atmosphere, the Chinese space agency announced, angering US officials who criticized Beijing's failure to announce this in advance. Landing that carries great risks.

The Chinese space agency, in a statement posted on its official page on the "WeChat" website, provided the coordinates of the collision, noting that the missile fell in the Sulu Sea, about 57 kilometers from the eastern coast of Palawan Island in the Philippines.

The agency stated that "most of the parts of the missile were destroyed" during its descent, after it was used last Sunday to launch the second unit out of three that China needs to complete its Tiangong space station, which is supposed to start operating at the end of this year.

Hours ago, the US military announced the return of the Chinese missile to the atmosphere.

"The Long March-5B missile of the People's Republic of China returned to the atmosphere over the Indian Ocean on July 30," he said in a tweet on Twitter, at 16:45 GMT.

For its part, the Malaysian Space Agency reported that it had spotted the burning wreckage of the missile before it fell into the Sulu Sea, east of Borneo Island.

"The missile's debris caught fire when it entered Earth's airspace, and the movement of burning debris passed through Malaysian airspace and could be detected in several areas, especially as it passed the airspace around the state of Sarawak," she said.

The Long March-5B rocket was not designed to control its orbital descent, which, as with previous launches, has drawn criticism.

"China has not provided accurate information about the trajectory of its Long March-5B rocket," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson wrote on Twitter on Saturday.

He added that "all countries that carry out space activities must adhere to best practices" because the fall of objects of this size "involves a great risk of causing human or material losses."

He stressed that sharing information is "essential" for the "responsible use" of space and keeping people safe here on Earth.