North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile on Sunday, the Seoul military said, in Pyongyang’s fourth show of force in a week as the United States and South Korea conduct a drill. military set.
South Korea and the United States have strengthened their defense cooperation in the face of North Korea’s growing military and nuclear threats. In recent months, Pyongyang has launched a series of tests of banned weapons and maintains an increasingly bellicose tone.
Washington and Seoul are in the midst of the biggest joint military exercise in five years, an 11-day “Shield of Freedom” drill. North Korea perceives these drills as preparations for an invasion and has warned of an “overwhelming” response.
“Our Armed Forces detected a short-range ballistic missile fired from the Tongchang-ri zone in North Pyongan Province at 11:05 am (local time)” towards the Sea of Japan, the Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said. South (JME).
The missile traveled 800 kilometers and is being analyzed by US and South Korean intelligence, the EME added.
“Our Armed Forces maintain a posture of full readiness based on their ability to respond overwhelmingly to any North Korean provocation, while joint exercises and maneuvers take place,” he added.
Japan also confirmed the release.
Japan’s Deputy Defense Minister Toshiro Ino told reporters his country had “logged a strong protest and strongly condemned” North Korea, using its embassy in Beijing.
The US military’s Indo-Pacific Command condemned the launch, highlighting the “destabilizing impact” of North Korea’s war program.
A few hours after the launch, the South Korean Ministry of Defense declared that at least one American BP-1BP long-range bomber participated in joint exercises with the United States.
– Volunteers –
The launch of the missile came a day after the official Korean press reported that more than 800,000 young people had volunteered for the army, with the aim of fighting the “American imperialists”.
On Thursday, Pyongyang test-fired its largest and most powerful Intercontinental Exchange ballistic missile (ICBC), the Washington-17.
North Korean news agency KCNA called the launch of the Hwasong-17 a response to “frantic” exercises by the United States and South Korea.
It is the second time this year that North Korea has launched an ICBM.
At the request of the United States and Japan, the UN Security Council is due to hold an emergency meeting on Monday (20) on the launch of the ballistic missile, Yonhap news agency reported.
North Korea’s KCNA news agency reported on Sunday that Pyongyang’s foreign ministry had “strongly” warned the United States and other countries that “legitimate self-defense countermeasures” for North Korea should be included in the discussion at the Council of UN security.
Experts have already warned that Pyongyang could use the joint exercises as a pretext for more missile launches.
Yesterday, KCNA said the joint maneuvers were “approaching an unforgivable red line”.
The latest wave of launches from Pyongyang has brought Seoul and Tokyo closer together, pushing them to seek to resolve their historic disputes and try to increase cooperation on security matters.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol traveled to Japan on Thursday to meet with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, aiming to strengthen their relations in the face of North Korea’s growing bellicosity.
Last year, North Korea declared itself an “irreversible” nuclear power. Recently, its leader, Kim Jong-un, called for an “exponential” increase in weapons production, including tactical nuclear weapons. Kim also ordered the North Korean military to step up its preparation for a “real war”.
Yang Moo-jin, an academic at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, said the latest missile launches serve multiple purposes. Among them are protesting the joint exercises and testing the trilateral response from South Korea, the United States and Japan.
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