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 By Cat Barton and Kang Jin-kyu Seoul (AFP) Jan 17, 2022
North Korea said Tuesday it test-fired two tactical guided missiles a day earlier to verify the accuracy of that weapon system. Monday's firing -- South Korea called them short range ballistic missiles -- marked North Korea's fourth weapons test this month as Pyongyang flexes its military muscle while ignoring offers of talks from the United States. Despite biting international sanctions, Pyongyang has conducted a string of weapons tests this year, including of hypersonic missiles, as leader Kim Jong Un pursues his avowed goal of further strengthening the military. Reeling economically from a self-imposed coronavirus blockade, impoverished North Korea has not responded to Washington's offers of talks, while doubling down on weapons tests and vowing a "stronger and certain" response to any attempts to rein it in. The launches come at a delicate time in the region, with North Korea's sole major ally China set to host the Winter Olympics next month and South Korea gearing up for a presidential election in March. The state news agency KCNA said Tuesday: "The two tactical guided missiles launched in the western area of the DPRK precisely hit an island target in the East Sea of Korea." DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. "The Academy of Defence Science confirmed the accuracy, security and efficiency of the operation of the weapon system under production," KCNA said. This latest test was first reported by the South Korean military's Joint Chiefs of Staff as well as Japan. In response, the United States called on North Korea Monday to "cease its unlawful and destabilizing activities." In a call with South Korean and Japanese officials, the US special representative on North Korea, Sung Kim, "expressed concern" about the missile launches and urged Pyongyang to return to dialogue "without preconditions," the State Department said.
North Korea fires more suspected missiles, flouts new sanctions Despite biting international sanctions, Pyongyang has conducted a string of weapons tests this year, including of hypersonic missiles, as leader Kim Jong Un pursues his avowed goal of further strengthening the military. Reeling economically from a self-imposed coronavirus blockade, impoverished North Korea has not responded to Washington's offers of talks, while doubling down on weapons tests and vowing a "stronger and certain" response to any attempts to rein it in. The launches come at a delicate time in the region, with North Korea's sole major ally China set to host the Winter Olympics next month and South Korea gearing up for a presidential election in March. Two suspected "short-range ballistic missiles" were fired east from an airport in Pyongyang early Monday, the South Korean military's Joint Chiefs of Staff said, with Japan also confirming the launch. Fired just before 9 am (0000 GMT), they flew 380 kilometres (about 240 miles) at an altitude of 42 km, the JCS added. The frequent and varied tests this year indicate North Korea "is trying to improve its technology and operational capability in terms of covert actions", Japanese Defence Minister Nobuo Kishi told reporters. Pyongyang said it successfully tested hypersonic gliding missiles on January 5 and January 11, with the second launch personally supervised by Kim. In response, the United States last week imposed fresh sanctions on five North Koreans connected to the country's ballistic missile programmes, prompting an angry reaction from Pyongyang. A North Korean foreign ministry spokesman described the move as a "provocation", according to state news agency KCNA. If "the US adopts such a confrontational stance, the DPRK will be forced to take stronger and certain reaction to it", the spokesman said hours before Pyongyang fired two train-launched missiles Friday. Analysts said the Monday test also appeared to be an attempt to send the United States a message. "It is signalling that it will forge ahead with tests despite criticism," Hong Min of the Korea Institute for National Unification in Seoul told AFP. - Needs a win - Hypersonic missiles are a top priority in Pyongyang's new five-year defence development plan, unveiled in January 2021, which it has pursued while dialogue with the United States remained stalled. With the country battling major economic hardship domestically after years of Covid-induced isolation, Pyongyang may be looking to offer citizens a military victory ahead of key domestic anniversaries. "It needs to present something to North Koreans," said Cheong Seong-chang of the Center for North Korea Studies at the Sejong Institute. "It now has become clear that it will be difficult for the North to score on the economic side." This weekend, a North Korean freight train crossed the Yalu River railroad bridge into China for the first time in over a year, according to the Yonhap news agency. The move could signal the prospect of resumed China-North Korea land trade, which has been suspended since the start of the pandemic in early 2020. It is likely the missile launches will ease off ahead of the start of the Beijing Winter Olympics, said Yang Moo-jin of the University of North Korean Studies. "As stability on the peninsula is a prerequisite for the successful Beijing Olympics, the North will not cross a red line," Yang said.
Moscow slams US sanctions on Russian with N.Korea ties Moscow (AFP) Jan 14, 2022 Moscow on Friday slammed US sanctions imposed earlier this week on a Russian citizen and a Russian company over involvement in North Korea's nuclear programme. Russia's foreign ministry quoted its spokeswoman Maria Zakharova as saying that the accusations were "absolutely unacceptable". "Without bothering with evidence, the United States is trying to substitute fiction for real facts," Zakharova said. She added that Washington is "throwing around far-fetched and baseless accusations that R ... read more
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