North Korea launched its intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) from the Pyongyang area just hours after South Korea and the United States criticized the DPRK for troop deployment to Russia. The long-range missile was fired on a lofted trajectory.
Japanese sources said the missile flew for about 86 minutes at an altitude of 7,000 kilometers before it splashed into the waters off the east coast, about 300 km west of Japan’s Okushiri Island. Gen. Nakatani, Japanese Defense Minister, said North Korea may have achieved the long-ever flight period for its intercontinental missile. This was DPRK’s 12th missile launch of the year 2024.
South Korea’s National Security Council condemned the launch as yet another violation of the UN Security Council resolution and threatened the peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula, as well as of the international community. Its Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun believes the rogue country’s atmospheric re-entry technology for ICBM seems to be near completion.
Experts say launching an ICBM at a standard trajectory requires more advanced technology to ensure that the warhead can withstand extreme heat.
Kim highlighted that North Korea is capable of achieving this with technological support from Russia. He quickly added that Moscow may be helping North Korea advance science and technology, but it isn’t necessarily superior to what South Korea or the US have.
North Korea Warns US and South Korea
North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un, in a statement, said the test fire was an appropriate military action for their rivals who intentionally escalated the regional situation, and posed a threat to the security of the republic. He said it constitutes an indispensable process in the course of constantly developing North Korea’s strategic attack forces. Kim highlighted that Pyongyang will never change its line of bolstering up its nuclear forces.
