Following a missile test in North Korea, UN Security Council countries have expressed concerns about further destabilization in the region. Now there should have been another missile launch.
New York – Western countries on the UN Security Council have described North Korea’s latest missile test as a threat to regional stability.
The steps taken by the autocracy in Pyongyang “increase the risk of misjudgments and escalations”, it said on Monday in a joint statement by the USA, Great Britain, France, Ireland and Albania together with Japan. Each new rocket launch not only promotes the weapons programs of the isolated country, but also expands the possibilities of illegal arms sales by North Korea all over the world.
North Korea had spoken last week of a successful second test of a hypersonic missile within four months. In the most recent test, the missile performed a lateral maneuver over 120 kilometers and hit a specified target in the Sea of Japan (Korean: East Sea) 700 kilometers away. According to the neighboring country South Korea, however, analyzes showed that the rocket flew shorter, at an altitude of less than 50 kilometers. Compared to the rocket launch in September, the test does not represent any technological progress.
South Korea reports missile test again
The South Korean military has now reported that a missile has been launched again in the direction of the open sea. The projectile was possibly a ballistic missile, said the General Staff in Seoul.
After being launched inland, the rocket flew in the direction of the Sea of Japan (Korean: East Sea). What type of missile it was exactly and how far it flew was initially unclear.
UN resolutions prohibit North Korea from testing ballistic missiles, which, depending on their design, can also carry a nuclear warhead. dpa
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