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Agence France-Presse

North Korea fired a ballistic missile on Wednesday, South Korea’s military said, just a week after leader Kim Jong-un vowed to boost Pyongyang’s nuclear arsenal at the “fastest possible speed”.
The launch was the latest in a string of sanctions-busting North Korean weapons tests so far this year, and came after US and South Korean officials warned Pyongyang was preparing to resume nuclear testing.
“One ballistic missile fired by North Korea today at 1203 (local time) from around Sunan towards the East Sea (Sea of Japan) was detected,” South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.
“Currently, our military is maintaining readiness posture by tracking and monitoring related movements in preparation for additional launches.”
Kim Jong-un’s ‘possible’ nuclear test in focus as China envoy visits Seoul
Japan’s coastguard also said that North Korea had launched “potentially a ballistic missile”. Tokyo’s deputy defence minister Makoto Oniki put the projectile’s range at 500km and its maximum altitude at 800km.
“North Korea’s recent action, including frequent missile launches, cannot be tolerated, as it poses a threat to security and safety of the region and international community,” Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters, adding that his country had logged a protest against North Korea.
The nuclear-armed state staged a dramatic return to long-range launches in March, test-firing at full range its most powerful intercontinental ballistic missile – which may be able to reach the continental United States.
Such tests had been paused while Kim met then-US president Donald Trump for a bout of diplomacy that collapsed in 2019.
Talks have stalled since, and despite biting sanctions, North Korea has doubled down on its military modernisation drive.


Kim said at a military parade last week that he would take measures to develop “the nuclear forces of our state at the fastest possible speed”, according to footage of his speech broadcast on state media.
“The nuclear forces, the symbol of our national strength and the core of our military power, should be strengthened in terms of both quality and scale.”
Repeated negotiations aimed at convincing Kim to give up his nuclear weapons programmes have come to nothing.
“There is a good chance that they test-fired a missile that can be equipped with a nuclear warhead,” Ahn Chan-il, a North Korean studies scholar, said.
Korean leaders Kim and Moon exchange letters even as tensions rise
Kim also warned that he could “pre-emptively” use his nuclear force to counter hostile forces at a meeting with top military brass last week.
The latest weapons test came just days before South Korea’s incoming president Yoon Suk-yeol, who has vowed a tougher stance on the North, takes office next week.
“It could be a warning message to … Yoon,” said Hong Min of the Korea Institute for National Unification.


Yoon has hinted he is only willing to talk about peace if North Korea confirms it is willing to denuclearise – something Pyongyang will never accept, Hong Min said.
“It could also signal Pyongyang’s stance that it has no choice but to further enhance its arsenal if Seoul and Washington decided to deploy strategic military assets to the South,” he added.
“It might be an intercontinental ballistic missile or something with a shorter range,” Lee Jong-sup, Yoon’s nominee for defence minister, said at his confirmation hearing on Wednesday.
US President Joe Biden is due to visit South Korea in May.
Additional reporting by Reuters


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North Korea

North Korea fires ballistic missile days before South’s President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol takes power

North Korean soldiers take part in a military parade in Pyongyang last month. Photo: KCNA via dpa

As North Korea’s Kim Jong-un threatens Asia with nuclear force, analysts caution against calling his bluff

A photo released by the North Korean government shows a claimed test-fire of a Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile in March. Photo: Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP

People in Seoul watch a news programme on North Korea’s military parade showing an image of Kim Jong-un. Photo: AP

A photo released by the North Korean government shows a claimed test-fire of a Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in March. Photo: Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP

North Korea’s ‘possible’ nuclear missile test in focus as China envoy visits Seoul

Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missiles displayed during a military parade in North Korea. Photo: Reuters.

South Korea’s chief nuclear envoy Noh Kyu-duk. Photo: YNA/dpa

Hwasong-17 missiles at a military parade to mark the 90th anniversary of North Korea’s army. Photo: Korean Central News Agency via AP

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Asia

East Asia


Experts said the launch could be a ‘warning message’ to Yoon who assumes office on May 10
North Korean leader Kim has vowed to develop his nuclear forces at the ‘fastest possible speed’



Experts said the launch could be a ‘warning message’ to Yoon who assumes office on May 10.


North Korea fires ballistic missile days before South’s President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol takes power

Experts said the launch could be a ‘warning message’ to Yoon who assumes office on May 10 North Korean leader Kim has vowed to develop his nuclear forces at the ‘fastest possible speed’

Experts said the launch could be a ‘warning message’ to Yoon who assumes office on May 10

North Korean leader Kim has vowed to develop his nuclear forces at the ‘fastest possible speed’