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According to state media, North Korea will launch two tactical guided missiles eastward on Friday as part of training involving a regiment of railroad-mounted missiles after North Korea warned of a “stronger” reaction to new U.S. sanctions. Fired.
The regiment launched two tactical guided missiles in the East Sea of South Korea that “accurately hit the set targets” after receiving a firepower mission from the staff in a “sudden notice” on Friday morning, state media Korean Central News Agency. report Saturday.
According to the authoritarian government’s mouthpiece, the training was aimed at “checking alertness” and “strengthening the ability to carry out firepower missions” of the regiment.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said on Friday that two suspicious ballistic missiles were launched from North Heian Province and traveled about 430 kilometers (267 miles) at an altitude of 36 kilometers.
According to JCS, the first missile was launched around 2:41 pm on Friday, followed by the second missile at 2:52 pm.
Ministry of Defense of Japan Claim We have detected the possibility of launching a ballistic missile from North Korea. It flew about 400 kilometers (248 miles) at an altitude of 50 kilometers and landed outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
This is the third report of a missile launch by Pyongyang this month. North Korea previously claimed to have launched two hypersonic missiles on January 5 and 11, respectively, the second under the supervision of Prime Minister Kim Jong Un.
The United States imposed sanctions on Wednesday on six North Koreans, one Russian, and a Russian company, who said they were responsible for procuring goods for North Korea’s weapons program.
In response, North Korea’s Foreign Ministry has accused the United States of imposing sanctions on North Korea prior to the recent missile launch and warning of a “stronger” reaction if Washington maintains a “conflict” stance. announced.
Ministry said in statement North Korea’s recent weapons development is not to target specific countries or jeopardize the security of neighboring countries, but to “modern defense capabilities,” KCNA said.
North Korea argued that strengthening defense capabilities was the “legitimate right” of a sovereign state, and that the sanctions imposed by the United States corresponded to “provocation” and “the logic of gangsters.”
Nuclear-armed nations have also criticized President Joe Biden’s administration for pursuing a policy of “isolating and choking” Pyeongtaek, calling for diplomacy and dialogue to promote denuclearization.
Denuclearization negotiations between the United States and North Korea have been stagnant since 2019 due to disagreements on sanctions easing in exchange for a limited denuclearization step. North Korea has accused the United States of pursuing “hostile policies,” Washington denied, and said it would be actively involved in dialogue with North Korea without preconditions.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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Aldgra Fredly is a Malaysia-based freelance writer featuring the Epoch Times Asia Pacific News.
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