In a significant development in the Korean peninsula, North Korea on Sunday claimed that it tested a cruise missile system as it vowed the "toughest response" to the US and South Korea for their continued military drills that it claims target the North. The latest weapon testing is the third known weapon display this year and suggests that Pyongyang is likely to remain on a spree of weapons testing with a confrontational stance against the US.
Kim observed the test of missile
According to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), North Korean leader Kim observed the test of sea-to-surface strategic cruise-guided weapons on Saturday.
The missiles are reported to be nuclear-capable, as KCNA said, "The missiles hit their targets after travelling 1,500 kilometers (932 miles) in elliptical and figure-eight-shaped flight patterns." However, it couldn't be independently verified.
After the testing, Kim said that North Korea's deterrence capabilities “are being perfected more thoroughly,” and he added that Pyongyang will make “strenuous efforts” to defend stability "on the basis of more powerfully developed military muscle."
North Korean Foreign Ministry slams US
The North Korean Foreign Ministry on Sunday also criticised the US for indulging in "serious military provocations" aimed at North Korea, accusing the Pentagon of conducting repeated military exercises with South Korea.
The Foreign Ministry's statement reads, "The reality stresses that the DPRK should counter the US with the toughest counteraction from A to Z as long as it refuses the sovereignty and security interests of the DPRK, and this is the best option for dealing with the US."
While Washington and Seoul have repeatedly said their drills are defensive in nature, North Korea considers US military training with South Korea as invasion rehearsals.
In recent years, the US and South Korea have expanded their military exercises in response to North Korea's advancing nuclear program.
The start of Trump's second term raises prospects for the revival of diplomacy between the US and North Korea, as Trump met Kim three times during his first term. The Trump-Kim diplomacy in 2018-19 fell apart due to wrangling over US-led economic sanctions on North Korea.
On Monday, Trump called North Korea “a nuclear power” as he spoke of his personal ties with Kim during a news conference at the Oval Office after his inauguration.
Washington, Seoul and their partners have long shunned describing North Korea as a nuclear state because that could be seen as accepting its pursuit of nuclear weapons in violation of UN Security Council resolutions.
(With inputs from AP)
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