South Korea Says North Korea Fired 1 Ballistic Missile Toward its Eastern Waters
Seoul: South Korea’s military said North Korea fired a suspected ballistic missile into its eastern waters on Friday, stalling talks with Washington and Seoul as Pyongyang stepped up its testing activities.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile flew across the country after being fired from the hinterland around the western town of Taekwan. Further flight details, including how far the weapon flew, were not immediately released.
The South Korean military has strengthened its surveillance and vigilance against the possibility of additional missile launches by North Korea and shared relevant information with the United States and Japan, the joint chiefs of staff said.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told reporters that the missile was believed to have crashed into waters outside the country’s exclusive economic zone and likely did not cause any damage. North Korea did not immediately confirm the launch.
North Korea has been accelerating the pace of weapons tests in recent weeks, including the firing of hypersonic missiles and cruise missiles last month that it says boost the capabilities of its nuclear-armed military.
The South Korean military had previously announced on Monday that it detected North Korea firing 10 projectiles into western waters as US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth began his two-day visit to South Korea.
The joint chiefs of staff also said North Korea fired the same number of projectiles before a summit between South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Gyeongju, South Korea, and Lee called for a stronger role for Beijing to persuade North Korea to return to dialogue with Washington and Seoul.
Following annual security talks with South Korean defense officials on Tuesday, Hegseth praised South Korea’s plans to increase military spending in the face of North Korean nuclear threats and other regional uncertainties.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has avoided any talks with Washington and Seoul since his diplomacy with US President Donald Trump was derailed during Trump’s first term in 2019 over disagreements over trading steps to ease US-led sanctions on North Korea for steps to dismantle Kim’s nuclear program.
It has since accelerated the expansion of its nuclear weapons and missile program and pushed Russia out of its foreign policy; He sent thousands of troops and large amounts of military equipment to help fuel President Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine. Kim’s arsenal now includes nuclear-capable missiles of various ranges targeting US allies in Asia and the US mainland.
At a major military parade in Pyongyang last month attended by senior officials from Russia, China and Vietnam, Kim showed off some of the most powerful weapons in his arsenal, including a new intercontinental ballistic missile that he may prepare to test in the coming weeks.
Kim called on Washington to drop its demand that the North surrender its nuclear weapons as a precondition for resuming diplomacy. He ignored Trump’s offer to meet while the American president was in South Korea to meet with world leaders attending last week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Gyeongju.
North Korea on Thursday condemned the Trump administration’s latest sanctions targeting cybercrime that helps finance its illicit nuclear weapons program, accusing Washington of harboring “evil” hostility towards Pyongyang and promising unspecified countermeasures. Some experts said the statement showed North Korea had no immediate urgency to restart negotiations with Washington.
