DPRK missile reaches record altitude during alleged ICBM test
Kyiv • UNN
North Korea has tested an intercontinental ballistic missile with a record altitude of more than 7,000 km. The launch took place against the backdrop of the DPRK's cooperation with Russia and the possible deployment of North Korean troops in Ukraine.
North Korea test-fired a long-range missile on Thursday, which U.S. officials said was an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said that the missile flew higher and longer than other missiles tested by the DPRK, UNN reports citing The Guardian.
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The newspaper called the launch of a long-range missile, which could theoretically hit the US mainland, another manifestation of the regime's contempt amid warnings about its troops' participation in the war in Ukraine.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un says the regime has taken "appropriate military action," adding that the United States and its allies in the region have increased tensions and "threaten" his country's security, according to state news agency KCNA.
Kim, who was present during the launch, said that the DPRK will continue to strengthen its nuclear arsenal, KCNA added.
South Korea's Yonhap news agency, citing the country's army, said the United States was preparing to deploy "strategic assets" - usually a reference to conventional and nuclear capabilities - in response to the missile test.
The South Korean government has announced new export controls on materials needed to produce solid-fuel missiles that are superior to those using liquid fuel in order to limit North Korea's weapons development capabilities, according to a statement from the Foreign Ministry in Seoul. The control measures will cover 15 items that North Korea finds difficult to produce on its own, including fuselages and combustion chambers.
Little is known about the type of missile that was launched on Thursday. The Japanese government said it reached a maximum altitude of more than 7,000 km - a record high - and flew for an unprecedented one hour and 26 minutes.
The DPRK, which last tested an ICBM almost a year ago, deliberately launches long-range missiles on a steep trajectory to bypass neighboring countries.
Japan's Defense Ministry said it believed the missile landed around 8:36 a.m. outside Japan's exclusive economic zone. The missile was launched from a site near the North Korean capital Pyongyang at 7:10 a.m. on Thursday and landed about 300 km west of Okushiri Island in Hokkaido. Japanese officials said there were no reports of damage or casualties.
US National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett said the launch proves that North Korea "continues to prioritize its illicit weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs over the well-being of its people," adding that Washington will work to ensure the security of US territory and its allies, South Korea and Japan.
If this information is confirmed, Thursday's test will be North Korea's first ICBM test since December 2023, when it launched the solid-fuel Hwasong-18.
South Korea's military intelligence warned lawmakers on Wednesday that the DPRK is preparing to test a missile designed to reach the United States. It said the regime may have completed preparations for its seventh nuclear weapons test.
Experts believe that North Korea has short-range nuclear missiles that can hit South Korea, but are skeptical of Pyongyang's claims that it is capable of hitting more distant targets using missiles with miniature nuclear warheads.
Thursday's launch comes less than a week before American voters go to the polls to elect a new president. North Korea has used missile launches and other provocations to draw attention to itself in the run-up to U.S. elections and anniversaries.
According to the publication, Kim Jong-un was also prompted to intensify his weapons program by the war in Ukraine. It is believed that about 10,000 North Korean troops have been sent to Russia to prepare for a possible deployment to Ukraine. On Wednesday, South Korea said more than 3,000 people had been moved closer to the battlefields, to the west of Russia.
Pyongyang is already supplying Russian troops with ammunition and missiles as part of a mutual defense agreement agreed this summer between Kim and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.
This week, the defense chiefs of the United States and South Korea called on North Korea to withdraw its troops from Russia, while U.S. Special Representative to the United Nations Robert Wood warned that North Korean soldiers who enter Ukraine "will definitely come back in body bags.
