US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said a North Korean missile test carried out during his visit to Seoul on Monday was a reminder of the need to deepen Washington’s cooperation with South Korea and the Japan to deter Pyongyang.
North Korea fired what appeared to be an intermediate-range ballistic missile around noon local time, which flew more than 700 miles east before falling into the sea, according to the South Korean military.
A few hours later, Blinken declared at a press conference that the launch highlighted the importance of collaboration between the US, South Korea and Japan, including sharing real-time missile data and holding trilateral military exercises.
“Today’s launch is just a reminder to all of us of how important our collaborative work is,” he exclaimed.
The secretary also warned about Pyongyang’s deepening ties with Moscow. He said Washington believed Russia intended to share space and satellite technology with North Korea in exchange for its support for the war in Ukraine, in which more than 1,000 North Korean soldiers were killed or injured.
President Joe Biden, who leaves office this month, has made progress in deepening trilateral cooperation between the United States, South Korea and Japan, despite historic problems that often plague relations between the Asian neighbors.
But political turmoil in South Korea, coupled with the imminent return of Donald Trump’s unpredictable rule in the United States, has raised questions about whether these efforts can be sustained.
South Korea’s political landscape
Last month, South Korean lawmakers voted to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol and suspend him from office after his Dec. 3 declaration of martial law shocked the country. Yoon’s impeachment trial is being heard by the Constitutional Court.
If Yoon is permanently removed from office, a presidential election would be called, and liberals — seen as the likely winners of that contest — have been critical of the ousted president’s efforts to partner with Tokyo.
Blinken, who also met with acting President Choi Sang-mok, this Monday (06), said at the press conference that although Washington had “serious concerns” about Yoon’s actions, it had confidence in the country’s institutions and in democratic resilience.
Monday’s launch was North Korea’s first since Nov. 5, when it fired at least seven short-range ballistic missiles.
It was not immediately clear what type of missile was fired, but North Korean IRBM tests last year featured a new solid-fuel design and carried what Pyongyang claimed was a hypersonic glide vehicle, a warhead designed to be able to maneuver and escape missile defenses.
The North has said it is working to make its all-range missiles solid-fuel.
Solid-fuel missiles do not need to be fueled immediately before launch, are often easier and safer to operate, and require less logistical support, making them harder to detect and more survivable than liquid-fuel weapons.
This content was originally published in North Korea tests medium-range missile while Blinken visits Seoul on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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