Missile Test By North Korea

The self-declared nuclear power North Korea has fired a short-range missile into the open sea, according to the South Korean military. The missile was shot down from Chagang province on the border with China and flown towards the Sea of Japan, the General Staff in South Korea announced on Tuesday. It was therefore initially unclear how far it flew and what type of missile it was. South Korea's National Security Council expressed its regret over the new missile test by the neighboring country.

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The Japanese government, which also confirmed the missile launch, assumed it was a ballistic missile, according to reports from the Kyodo news agency. UN resolutions prohibit North Korea from testing such missiles, which, depending on their design, could also carry a nuclear warhead. The country is subject to severe international sanctions because of its nuclear weapons program.

North Korea had already tested two short-range ballistic missiles a good two weeks ago. According to the company's own statements, the operational readiness of a mobile launch pad was tested on a train. South Korean President Moon Jae In had called the test a "provocation".

Meanwhile, North Korea's UN Ambassador Kim Song stressed in New York on Monday that his country had the undeniable right to develop and test weapon systems of all kinds. In the general debate at the UN General Assembly, Kim accused the USA of hostile policies against his country - which the US government denies. Kim called on the US to end its joint military maneuvers with South Korea once and for all. Negotiations between the USA and North Korea over its nuclear program have not made any progress for more than two and a half years.

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North Korea launched at least one unidentified missile into the Sea of   Japan (called the East Sea in the two Koreas) on Tuesday , according to the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), which is investigating the details of the new test.

At the moment, the number of projectiles fired by Pyongyang in this weapons test is unknown , which comes after North Korea tested two other ballistic missiles on the 15th.

The Ministry of Defense of Japan, which also detected the launch, said for its part that it could again be a ballistic-type projectile, the use of which is sanctioned by the UN.

The test takes place the same day that the North holds a session of its parliament, the Supreme People's Assembly, from which it is believed that some diplomatic message could come out, and after the mixed signals about a possible reopening of the dialogue sent by the hermetic regime in the last days.

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On the 15th, the North launched another two ballistic missiles from a train, as announced by the regime, in which it was its first test from this type of platform and after not having tested ballistic missiles since last March.

The South responded to that launch with other weapons tests that seemed to show a new escalation in the peninsula, although in the following days the two countries made apparent gestures of willingness to return to the talks that have remained stagnant since 2019.

After South Korean President Moon Jae-in spoke at the UN about the need to sign a treaty that seals peace and officially ends the conflict that opened in 1950 between the two neighbors - which was stopped with a ceasefire in 1953 - North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's sister , Kim Yo-yong, issued two somewhat more conciliatory statements last Friday and Saturday.

However, in both he urged Seoul and Washington to improve their rhetoric towards Pyongyang if they wanted to make progress for the dialogue on the peninsula.

These messages make analysts think about the possibility that North Korea may want to initiate a rapprochement.

North Korea defends its right to develop and test weapons at the UN

North Korea defended its right to develop and test advanced weapons at the UN on Monday, something it considers necessary given the constant "threat" posed to the country by its southern neighbors and the United States.

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"No one can deny the just right of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to develop, test, produce and possess weapons systems equivalent to those that they possess or are developing," the North Korean ambassador said in reference to the US and South Korea in United Nations, Kim Song.

Seoul says it will continue to seek dialogue with Pyongyang

The South Korean government insisted today that it will continue to seek progress in the inter-Korean relationship through "dialogue and cooperation" hours after the launch.

"In relation to actions such as missile launches from the North that increase military tension, we will continue working for the peaceful and stable management of the situation in the peninsula," explained a spokesman for the Ministry of Unification, in charge of relations with the North. in statements to the media.

"In turn, the government's position is to continue working towards the advancement of peace and inter-Korean relations on the Korean peninsula through dialogue and cooperation," he added in statements collected by the Yonhap agency.

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