North Korea fired a ballistic missile toward its east coast on Saturday, South Korea’s defense ministry said, adding tension to already fraught ties between the neighbors over landmine blasts near the border last month.
The missile was launched from the Wonsan area on North Korea’s east coast at around 6:30 a.m. local time and traveled more than 700 kilometers (435 miles), South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. Seoul’s military said it has strengthened surveillance and readiness and is analyzing the projectile’s specifications with US authorities.
South Korea’s National Security Office convened an emergency security meeting to assess the impact of the North Korean test on security and to take necessary measures. The Seoul government urged the North to immediately halt the launches, which it said violate UN Security Council resolutions.
The latest missile test is North Korea’s second in the last month and comes amid accusations by Seoul that Pyongyang was responsible for a landmine blast in the Demilitarized Zone that injured three South Korean soldiers. The North’s launches underscore leader Kim Jong Un’s confidence that he can pursue weapons development unhindered, and highlight the threat it poses in the region.
South Korea has demanded an apology from the North over the mine blast, with the UN Command describing it as a violation of the armistice between the two nations. Pyongyang has denied involvement and derided the probe into the explosion as a “farce.”
Kim has been deepening strategic ties with Russia’s Vladimir Putin and continues close coordination with China in a growing alignment among the three nations against a US-led security order, even as President Donald Trump has made fresh overtures to revive a dialogue with Pyongyang.
The North Korean leader’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, has also warned that the country will consider new military strategies in response to Japan’s expanding defense capabilities, saying Pyongyang would not remain a “passive onlooker.”
In its latest annual threat assessment report, the US intelligence authorities said North Korea had “successfully tested” intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the entire US mainland and gained “valuable war-fighting experience and military technology from Russia for participating in combat operations against Ukraine.”
Japan has said in its latest defense white paper that North Korea has been demonstrating “extremely rapid” progress in missile development, including advanced hypersonic missiles, following Kim’s military pact with Putin agreed to in 2024.
–With assistance from Soo-Hyang Choi.
Disclaimer: This report is auto generated from the Bloomberg news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.