North Korea fires missiles ahead of key anniversary
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Pyongyang conducted ballistic missile tests last week, hours after a US ballistic missile submarine arrived at a South Korean port.
PHOTO: AFP
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SEOUL - Pyongyang conducted twin missile launches late on Monday, ahead of Korean War anniversary celebrations that will be attended by Chinese dignitaries in the first foreign delegation visit to the country since its 2020 pandemic border closure.
South Korea’s Defence Ministry described the two projectiles as ballistic missiles that flew about 400km before falling into the sea, according to reports by South Korea’s Yonhap news agency and Japan’s Kyodo.
“Our military detected two ballistic missiles North Korea fired from areas near Pyongyang into the East Sea at 11.55pm on the 24th and at midnight of the 25th,” Yonhap quoted South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff as saying.
The launches were the latest in a series of weapons tests in recent weeks by Pyongyang.
The reports come amid heightened tensions on the Korean peninsula as South Korea and the United States take steps to boost military readiness
Last week, South Korea hosted a visit by a US nuclear-capable submarine, the first such deployment there by a nuclear-armed American vessel in decades.
A second US submarine, the nuclear-powered USS Annapolis, arrived at a South Korean naval base around the time of Monday’s missile launches, according to Yonhap.
The reclusive North Korean regime routinely conducts weapons tests, and the launches come days after leader Kim Jong Un personally oversaw the latest firing of the country’s newest intercontinental ballistic missile, the solid-fuel Hwasong-18.
Relations between the two Koreas are currently at one of their lowest historical points, as diplomacy between Pyongyang and Seoul has stalled and Mr Kim has called for ramping up weapons development, including tactical nukes.
In efforts to bolster deterrence, Seoul and Washington have staged joint military exercises with advanced stealth jets and US strategic assets.
The White House took issue with Pyongyang’s latest action, with Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre saying “we certainly condemn the DPRK’s ballistic missile launches”, referring to North Korea by the acronym of its formal name.
The missile tests “pose a threat to the DPRK’s neighbours and the international community”, Ms Jean-Pierre said, adding: “Our commitment to the defence of the Republic of Korea and Japan remains ironclad.”
Significant visit
Monday’s launches come ahead of celebrations in North Korea this week marking the 70th anniversary of the end of fighting in the Korean War.
A Chinese delegation led by Politburo member Li Hongzhong will travel to the North for the event, the state-run Korean Central News Agency reported.
North Korea has been under a rigid self-imposed coronavirus blockade since early 2020 to protect itself from Covid-19, resuming some trade with China only last year.
An armistice agreement ending Korean War hostilities was signed on July 27, 1953, but the two Koreas remain technically at war because the 1950-1953 conflict ended in an armistice and not a peace treaty.
Tensions on the Korean peninsula have ratcheted up recently due to the disappearance of US soldier Travis King, who was on a tour of the demilitarised zone last week when he ran across the border into North Korea.
The United Nations Command, a US-led multinational force that oversees the Korean War truce, on Monday said it has begun talks with Pyongyang over the missing American serviceman. AFP, REUTERS
