According to US and South Korean officials, North Korea for the 2nd time in two weeks fired at least three unidentified projectiles on March 9. Kim Jong Un reportedly oversaw the testing of this long-ranged artillery.
Crux of the Matter
The projectiles with a maximum flight distance of 200 kilometers (124 miles) and a maximum altitude of 50 kilometers (31 miles) South Korea’s Defense Ministry detected different types of short-range projectiles fired from the Sondok area on North Korea’s east coast into the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan.
The launches have violated 2018 Pyongyang agreements. Currently, our military is monitoring related movement in case of an additional launch while maintaining thorough preparedness. – Japan Defence Ministry
The South Korean Defense Ministry also said this could be a part of Pyongyang’s winter military drills. North Korean state media says it carried out military exercises from February 28 till March 2, when Pyongyang fired two unidentified short-range projectiles from an area near the coastal city of Wonsan. A spokesperson for the US State Department said, “We continue to call on North Korea to avoid provocations, abide by obligations under UN Security Council Resolutions, and return to sustained and substantive negotiations to do its part to achieve complete denuclearization.”
North Korea leader Kim Jong Un oversaw latest missile launch: KCNA https://t.co/LSTE977Ije pic.twitter.com/sgdaIvnqLI — Reuters (@Reuters) March 10, 2020
Previous Incidents The recent launches come after a nearly two-month pause in similar activities by North Korea. North Korea test-fired missiles 13 times in 2019 amidst derailed talks with the United States. However, it did not fire the intercontinental-range missiles which are a major cause of worry to US administration. In 2019, Kim warned the US that it had until the end of the year to jump-start the stalled denuclearization talks. When that deadline came and no developments were seen, Kim announced during a New Year’s Day message that he would bolster its nuclear deterrent and no longer be held to a self-imposed moratorium on major weapons testing. North Korea’s military moves are often timed for maximum political impact both at home and abroad. Launches are often an attempt to be on the global radar. While both South Korea and North Korea face the deadly coronavirus outbreak, North Korea has sealed its borders and quarantined all foreigners to prevent an outbreak inside the country.
Curiopedia
The 2019 North Korea–United States Hanoi Summit was a two-day summit meeting between North Korean Chairman Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump, held at the Metropole Hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam, on February 27–28, 2019. This was the second meeting between the leaders of the DPRK and the United States, following their first meeting in Singapore the previous year. On February 28, 2019, the White House announced that the summit was cut short and that no agreement was reached. Trump later clarified that it was due to North Korea’s request to end to all sanctions. North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho asserted that the country only sought a partial lifting of the five United Nations sanctions placed on North Korea between 2016 and 2017. More Info
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