SEUL 25 May (Reuters) – North Korea fires three missiles, including one thought to be an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), after US President Joe Biden left Asia after a trip in the United States. which accepted new measures to deter nuclear. -Armed state.
The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said the three missiles were fired in less than an hour from the Sunan area of the northern capital, Pyongyang, where its international airport has become at a missile test center.
The first missile launched Wednesday appeared to be an ICBM, while an unidentified second missile appears to have failed mid-flight, JCS said. The third missile was a short-range ballistic missile (SRBM), he said.
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In response, the United States and South Korea conducted combined real-fire drills, including ground-to-ground missile testing with the U.S. Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) and the South Hyunmoo-2 SRBM. they both said military.
“Our army’s display of strength was intended to highlight our determination to respond firmly to any North Korean provocation, including an ICBM launch, and our overwhelming ability and willingness to carry out a surgical attack on the source. of provocation, “the JCS said in a statement.
North Korea has carried out a series of missile launches this year, from hypersonic weapons to trying to fire its largest ICBMs for the first time in nearly five years. It also looks like it is preparing for what would be its first nuclear test since 2017.
U.S. and South Korean officials had recently warned that North Korea seemed ready for another arms test, possibly during Biden’s visit, which was his first trip to Asia as president and included a summit with South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol in Seoul.
Yoon, who took office on May 10, convened his first meeting of the National Security Council, which strongly condemned the latest release as a “grave provocation,” especially before Biden returned home.
Yoon ordered the aides to strengthen expanded U.S. deterrence and the combined defense stance as agreed with Biden, his office said.
“North Korea’s continued provocations will only lead to a stronger and faster deterrence between South Korea and the United States, and it will isolate itself,” the Yoon government said in a separate statement.
A White House official said Biden, who left Japan on Tuesday evening, had been informed of the releases and would continue to receive updates.
South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also agreed to step up diplomatic efforts to bolster expanded deterrence and facilitate a new UN sanctions resolution. in a phone call, the Seoul ministry said.
A woman watches television broadcasting news of North Korea launching three missiles that appeared to have involved an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in Seoul, South Korea, on May 25, 2022. REUTERS / Kim Hong-Ji
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“We call on the DPRK to refrain from further provocations and to start a sustained and substantive dialogue,” a State Department spokesman said, using the initials of North Korea’s official name.
SHOW OF STRENGTH
Pyongyang resumed ICBM testing in late March, ending its 2017 self-imposed moratorium on long-range missiles and nuclear testing amid stalled denuclearization talks with Washington. Read more
In Wednesday’s test, the alleged ICBM flew 360 km (223.7 miles) at an altitude of 540 km, while the SRBM flew 760 km at an altitude of 60 km, JCS said.
Japan reported at least two launches, one of which flew about 300 km and reached a maximum altitude of 550 km, and the other at a distance of about 750 km (465 miles) and a maximum altitude of 50 km, said the Minister of Defense of Japan.
Japanese broadcaster NHK said the missiles appeared to have fallen outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
Japanese Cabinet Secretary-General Hirokazu Matsuno said the North could take more provocative action, including a nuclear test.
The U.S. military’s Indo-Pacific command said it was aware of the “multiple” launches. They highlighted the “destabilizing impact of the DPRK’s illicit weapons program”, but did not pose an immediate threat.
In Seoul over the weekend, Biden and Yoon agreed to conduct larger military exercises and deploy more U.S. strategic assets if necessary to deter North Korea’s intensification of arms tests. Read more
But they also offered to send COVID-19 vaccines to North Korea as the isolated country fights its first confirmed outbreak, and called on Pyongyang to return to diplomacy. Read more
There had been no response from Pyongyang to diplomatic openings or offers of help, Biden said at the time.
The waning hours of Biden’s visit to the region also saw Russian and Chinese bombers jointly patrolling near Japanese and South Korean air defense zones on Tuesday in a timely farewell. Read more
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Report by Hyonhee Shin; additional reports by Soo-hyang Choi and Josh Smith in Seoul, David Dolan and Mariko Katsumura in Tokyo, and David Brunnstrom, Phillip Stewart, Kanishka Singh, and Eric Beech in Washington; edited by Richard Pullin and Gerry Doyle
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