North Korea said Tuesday that the latest missile it tested is a new hypersonic, medium-range missile designed to hit targets in the Pacific.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has vowed to expand Pyongyang's nuclear arsenal to counter rival nations.
On Monday, South Korea's military said it spotted North Korea firing a missile that flew 1,100 kilometers before landing in waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan.
North Korea has demonstrated multiple weapons systems in the past year that could target its neighbors as well as the United States. Among the weapons tested were intercontinental ballistic missiles with solid fuel. Concerns have been raised that the North could further advance its military capabilities through technology provided by Russia, as the two countries have increased cooperation on the war in Ukraine.
In recent years, North Korea has launched and tested various medium-range missiles that, if perfected, could reach the US military base in Guam.
As of 2021, it has been testing hypersonic drones designed to fly at least five times faster than the speed of sound. The purpose of the speed and mobility of such weapons is to withstand regional missile defense systems. However, it is not clear whether these missiles can fly continuously at the same speed as the North claims.
North Korean state media said Kim oversaw the missile test on Monday and that the missile traveled 1,500 kilometers, reaching two different peak points, 99.8 kilometers and 42.5 kilometers, and that it reached a speed 12 times faster than of sound, before hitting the naval target correctly.
Lee Sung Joon, spokesman for South Korea's General Staff, stated that the South Korean military believes North Korea is exaggerating the capabilities of its hypersonic system, noting that the missile covered a shorter distance and that it did not reach a second peak point in its trajectory.
According to Lee, it is possible that this test was a follow-up to another test of an intermediate-range hypersonic ballistic missile conducted in April. He also questioned the effectiveness of using these systems in a relatively small territory like the Korean Peninsula. He added that the South Korean and US militaries are continuing to analyze the missile.
Kim Jong Un described the missile as a key achievement in his goals to bolster North Korea's nuclear defense program, creating an arsenal "that no one can answer to," according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
Kim reiterated that his insistence on strengthening the nuclear arsenal is aimed at countering "various security threats posed by hostile forces." But KCNA did not mention direct criticism of Washington, Seoul or Tokyo.
The missile launch occurred during US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visit to Seoul, where he held talks with South Korean allies on the North Korean nuclear threat and other issues.
In a press conference with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul, Blinken condemned North Korea's missile launch, stressing that the activity violates UN Security Council resolutions against the country's weapons programs. North.
He also expressed concern about increased cooperation between North Korea and Russia in Moscow's war in Ukraine.
Blinken described military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow as a "two-way street", saying that Russia has provided the North with military equipment and training and intends to provide it with space and satellite technology.
According to estimates from the US, Ukraine and South Korea, North Korea has sent more than 10,000 troops and conventional weapons systems to support Moscow's war campaign. There are concerns that Russia could gift North Korea with advanced weapons technology in return, potentially increasing the threat posed by Kim's nuclear-armed military.
At a year-end policy conference, Kim Jong Un vowed to pursue a "tougher" policy against the US and criticized the Biden administration's efforts to strengthen security cooperation with Seoul and Tokyo, which he described as a " nuclear military bloc for aggression". REL (A2 Televizion)
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