North Korea launches multiple short-range ballistic missiles toward sea
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — north korea multiple short-range launches ballistic missiles Days after the UN nuclear watchdog warned that North Korea was making “very serious” progress in its efforts to produce nuclear weapons, its neighbors said on Sunday it was moving towards the sea.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said each of the missiles fired from the North’s Sinpo region flew about 140 kilometers (87 miles) toward the country’s eastern waters. He stated that South Korea is ready to repel any provocation by North Korea and maintains close information exchanges with the United States and Japan.
At an emergency meeting of the National Security Council, senior South Korean officials expressed concern about North Korea’s repeated ballistic missile tests and urged them to stop immediately. Sunday’s launches came hours before South Korean President Lee Jae Myung left the country to visit India and Vietnam.
The US and Japanese armies also announced that the launches were detected. US Indo-Pacific Command He said the United States remains committed to the defense of its homeland and its allies in the region. Japan’s Defense Ministry said Tokyo strongly protested Pyongyang, saying the launches threatened regional and international peace and violated U.N. Security Council resolutions banning any ballistic activities by North Korea.
The launch site, Sinpo, is an east coast city in North Korea with significant shipyard use for construction. submarines.
According to South Korean media, the South Korean military was analyzing whether the latest launches were from a submarine, a land-based launcher, or both platforms. When asked where the missiles were launched from, Japanese Deputy Defense Minister Masahisa Miyazaki told reporters that Japan was analyzing the launch details in coordination with the United States and South Korea.
When it comes to launches a submarine, This would be North Korea’s first submarine-launched ballistic missile test in four years.
It would be a worrying development if North Korea had a greater ability to fire missiles from underwater, as it is difficult for its rivals to detect such launches in advance. Last year North Korea announced a nuclear-powered submarine It is under construction for the first time.
Sunday’s launches were the last of North Korea’s weapons tests this year.
Last week North Korea said: Leader Kim Jong Un supervised missile tests from the destroyer of the country. Last week, North Korea announced that it was conducting three-day test activities to examine armed ballistic missiles. cluster bomb warheads and other new weapon systems. He said he tested it last month improved solid fuel engine For missiles that can reach the US mainland.
Kim has focused on expanding his nuclear and missile arsenal since high-risk moves nuclear diplomacy Relations with US President Donald Trump collapsed in 2019. Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire to restore diplomacy with Kim, and the North Korean leader recently left open. Door to dialogue with Trump but he urged Washington to abandon demands for the North’s nuclear disarmament as a precondition for negotiations.
Trump will go to Beijing for a while rescheduled summit With Xi Jinping in May. Some observers speculate that North Korea’s latest testing activities are likely aimed at increasing its influence in future relations with the United States, as the Trump-Xi meeting could provide a diplomatic opening with Pyongyang.
On Wednesday, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency Rafael Grossi He said his agency had confirmed a “rapid increase” in activity at nuclear production facilities in North Korea. Grossi told reporters in Seoul that activities in North Korea indicate a “very serious increase” in its nuclear weapons production capacity.
His comments reflected the view of many outside observers that North Korea is taking steps to expand its main Yongbyon nuclear complex and build additional ones. uranium enrichment fields In recent years. Last September, South Korea’s Unification Minister Chung Dong-young said that North Korea was carrying out an operation. four uranium enrichment facilities and they were running every day.
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Yamaguchi reported from Tokyo.
