Beijing – North Korea has tested two Short range ballistic missiles On thursday. It was Kim Jong Un’s first launch since President Joe Biden took office, testing what the Kim regime claimed was “a new type of guided tactical projectile” that hit its test targets on the country’s east coast.
The launches took place just hours before Mr. Biden first scheduled solo press conference as commander-in-chief, during which the president confirmed that the projectiles were ballistic missiles and therefore a violation of United Nations sanctions that prevented North Korea from testing such weapons.
The missiles flew approximately 270 miles and landed in the East Sea. In its report on Friday stating that the missiles were a newly developed variety, North Korea’s state news agency KCNA said that Kim himself did not observe the launch, which he did in some previous missile tests.
KCNA / Reuters
Biden said he considers North Korea to be his main foreign policy challenge, and in which he is continuously consulting with US allies and partners while the White House seeks to devise a new policy to deal with the threat.
“There will be answers if they decide to climb,” said Biden. “We will respond accordingly. But I am also prepared for some form of diplomacy, but it must be conditioned to the final result of denuclearization.”
“It is a clear statement of intimidation,” South Korean Lieutenant General Chun In-bum told CBS News. He said North Korea wanted to show the world that “they are not subject to any external rules. The two short-range ballistic missiles could easily be medium- or long-range missiles, if [North] Korea intended to do that. This will go on and on until North Korea goes too far, and that’s what I’m afraid of. ”
North Korea has tested many missiles over the years, and the regime often tests new and acting US presidents in this way to get attention and show anger. Thursday’s launch was the first test of a banned missile in a year, and it came just days after the first test of any weapon under the Kim regime since Biden took office.
Biden downplayed the weekend test with a laugh, but his comments on Thursday showed his government’s concern about North Korea’s calculated and growing threats.
The US Army’s Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement on Thursday that it was “aware of North Korean missile launches” and would continue to monitor the situation and “consult with our allies and partners”.
“This activity highlights the threat that North Korea’s illicit weapons program poses to its neighbors and the international community,” said the command. “The United States’ commitment to the defense of the Republic of Korea [South Korea] and Japan remains iron. “
Last week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin visited the capitals of Japan and South Korea and underlined that the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula remains one of the new administration’s main priorities.
The Biden White House is currently conducting a review of its policy for North Korea, with an update expected in the coming weeks.
“It is a daunting challenge for the Biden government,” said Won Gon Park, a professor of North Korean studies at South Korea’s Ewha Women’s University.
“Before finalizing its review of North Korean policy, the Biden government is forced to respond to the North Korean provocation,” he told CBS News. “The Biden government wants to emphasize the principles and norms of the international order. As North Korea’s ballistic missile is a definite violation of UN Resolution 1874, they need to convene the Security Council and condemn North Korea.”
KCNA / Reuters
North Korea has a long history of leveraging missile launches to try to obtain concessions from Washington at the negotiating table, often demanding financial aid and other assistance. The country is one of the poorest in the world and was supposedly battling hunger and drought even before the coronavirus pandemic.
“To prevent North Korea from advancing its nuclear and missile capabilities, it is important for South Korea and the United States to bring North Korea back to the negotiating table through four-party talks involving China, South Korea. , USA and North Korea, “said Cheong Seong-Chang, Director of the North Korea Study Center in South Korea.” Getting North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons, which the North considers vital for its security, is as close to impossible as getting Israel, India and Pakistan to give up their own nuclear weapons. “
Jen Kwon of CBS News in Seoul and Tucker Reals in London contributed to this report.