Japanese sea
North Korea confirms test of new ICBM
STORY: North Korea confirmed testing of a new ICBM on Thursday. The creation of the new strategic weapon shows the world the power of North Korea’s strategic armed forces, said head of state Kim Jong Un, according to the state news agency KCNA. Accordingly, Kim had personally conducted the test. Footage shows him with officers observing a rocket launch. The official photos are said to be from Thursday. Independent verification of the data is not possible. The Japanese Ministry of Defense released footage that is said to show the missile’s contrail. She eventually crashed into the Sea of Japan. With the test, North Korea ended its 2018 self-imposed moratorium. The United States, South Korea and Japan sharply condemned the missile test.
North Korea’s regime has confirmed testing of a new type of ICBM. Official photos show President Kim Jong Un observing a rocket launch.
North Korea says it has successfully tested a new kind of nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that can reach the United States. Ruler Kim Jong Un himself oversaw the final preparation phase for the launch of a Hwasongpho-17 ICBM on Thursday and gave the launch order, state-controlled media reported on Friday. The test was able to prove “the reliability of their immediate use under wartime conditions”. The information cannot be independently verified. North Korea thus confirmed the test, which had immediately alarmed neighboring countries South Korea and Japan the day before. South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in accused the largely isolated North Korea of breaching the self-imposed moratorium on testing long-range military missiles, threatening regional security and violating UN resolutions.
UN Security Council wants to examine the incident
The resolutions ban North Korea from testing ICBMs and other ballistic missiles. Such missiles are usually surface-to-surface missiles which, depending on their design, can also carry a nuclear warhead. According to its own website, the UN Security Council wants to deal with North Korea in New York on Friday. North Korean media described the new weapon system as “the central means of attack for the strategic armed forces of the People’s Republic and a reliable means of deterring nuclear war”. The US was accused of making a nuclear threat to North Korea. Kim was quoted as saying his country was “fully prepared for a long-term confrontation with the US imperialists”. US talks with North Korea over its nuclear weapons program have been at a standstill for more than three years. Experts therefore assume that Pyongyang could also try to increase the pressure on Washington with its latest missile tests. The country had already undertaken several missile tests this year.
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US condemns recent tests in North Korea
The US government also strongly condemned North Korea’s latest ICBM test, but stressed that the door to dialogue was still open. However, North Korea must immediately stop its destabilizing activities. Japan’s Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi spoke on Friday of a “serious threat with a different dimension than before”. The test poses a serious threat to the peace and stability of Japan and the international community. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his South Korean counterpart Chung Eui Yong called for a decisive response, according to the State Department in Seoul. Additional measures by the UN Security Council are absolutely necessary in this context. According to the information, Chung and his Japanese colleague Yoshimasa Hayashi made similar statements in a telephone call. North Korea is subject to tough international sanctions because of its nuclear weapons program.
North Korea threatens the United States
According to North Korean media, the “Hwasongpho-17” was launched at Pyongyang International Airport, reached a height of up to over 6,200 kilometers after a vertical climb and hit the intended target in the Sea of Japan (Korean: East Sea) 1,090 kilometers from the launch point. The information corresponded roughly to that of the South Korean military from the day before. It was the largest test of an ICBM by North Korea to date. ICBMs include missiles that can fly more than 5500 kilometers. North Korea had already undertaken three ICBM tests in 2017. After testing an ICBM known as the Hwasong-15 in November of that year, the leadership in Pyongyang had the state media announce that the country was now in a position to attack the entire mainland United States with nuclear warheads. Experts doubted whether North Korea was technically capable of doing this at the time.