North Korea said on Monday it simulated a nuclear attack on South Korea by launching a ballistic missile over the weekend in its fifth missile demonstration this month to protest the largest joint U.S. military exercises in years. and South Korea.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has ordered his military to conduct more exercises to improve the war readiness of his nuclear forces in the face of “aggression” from his enemies, state media reported.
The South Korean and Japanese militaries detected the launch of the short-range missile on Sunday in waters off the North’s east coast less than an hour before the United States flew long-range B-1B bombers to train with South Korean fighter jets. . The North characterizes the US and South Korean exercises as a rehearsal to invade, though the allies insist they are defensive in nature. Some experts say North Korea is using the exercises as a pretext to advance its weapons programs.
The Pyongyang-official Korean Central News Agency said the missile, which flew about 800 kilometers (500 miles), was tipped with a dummy nuclear warhead. He described the test as successful, saying the device detonated as intended 800 meters (yards) above water at a location simulating an unspecified “primary enemy target,” purportedly reaffirming the reliability of blast control devices. nuclear weapon and warhead detonators.
The report said the launch was the final step of a two-day drill that also involved nuclear command and control exercises and training military units to more quickly switch to the nuclear counter-attack posture, properly handle nuclear weapons systems and execute attack plans.
The exercise was also a “stronger warning” to the United States and South Korea, who are “undisguising their explicit intent to unleash war” against North Korea, KCNA said.
Photos released by state media showed Kim walking through a forest with his daughter and senior military officials and a missile North Korea described as a tactical nuclear weapons system shooting out of the forest spewing flames and smoke.
Saying that his enemies are becoming “increasingly pronounced in their aggressive moves,” Kim laid out unspecified “strategic tasks” to further develop his nuclear forces and enhance their readiness for war, KCNA said. This indicated that the North could up the ante on its weapons demonstrations in the coming weeks or months.
Jeon Ha Gyu, a spokesman for South Korea’s defense ministry, said it is clear that North Korea, with its increasing testing activity, is making “considerable progress” in nuclear weapons technology, but did not provide a specific assessment. on the North’s claim about the successful detonation of the nuclear warhead.
Photos from North Korea indicated that the latest launch was of a solid-fuel missile apparently modeled after Russia’s Iskander mobile ballistic system that the North has been testing since 2019. The missiles are designed to travel at low altitudes and be maneuverable in flight, which theoretically improves its chances of evading South Korea’s anti-missile defenses.
North Korea likely has dozens of nuclear warheads, but there are differing assessments of how far the North has gone in miniaturizing and engineering those weapons so they can fit on the newer weapons it has tested in recent years.
While North Korea, after six nuclear tests, can fit simple nuclear warheads to some of its older systems, such as the Scud or Rodong missiles, it will likely require more technology upgrades and nuclear tests to build warheads that can be installed on its newer tactical systems. , according to Lee Choon Geun, an honorary fellow at the South Korea Institute for Science and Technology Policy.
Sunday’s short-range launch was North Korea’s fifth missile event this month and the third since the US and South Korean militaries began joint exercises on March 13. The allied exercises, which will continue through Thursday, include computer simulations and their biggest spring camp. exercise since 2018.
So far in 2023, the North has fired around 20 missiles in nine different launch events. They included short-range missiles fired from the ground, submarine-launched cruise missiles and two different ICBMs fired at an airport near Pyongyang as it tries to demonstrate a dual capability to carry out nuclear strikes on South Korea and the United States on the mainland.
The latest ICBM test last Thursday preceded a summit between South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who agreed to resume security talks and take other steps to improve their relations. , often tense, in the face of threats from North Korea.
North Korea is already coming off a record year in test activity, with more than 70 missiles fired by 2022, as Kim accelerates his weapons development aimed at forcing the United States to accept the idea of the North as a nuclear power and negotiate sanctions. much needed. relief from a position of strength.
In response to the latest ICBM launch, the UN Security Council scheduled an emergency open meeting on Monday morning at the request of the US, UK, Albania, Ecuador, France and Malta. Security Council resolutions have long banned North Korea’s ballistic missile activity, but the council’s permanent members Russia and China have frustrated further punishment or sanctions in recent years.
The UN Security Council held an informal meeting on Friday in which the United States, its allies and human rights experts highlighted what they described as the dire human rights situation in North Korea. China and Russia denounced the meeting as a politicized move.
The North Korean Mission to the UN called the meeting illegal over “our non-existent ‘human rights problem’.” He also said the United States held Friday’s meeting “while organizing the aggressive joint military exercise that poses a serious threat to our national security.”
