North Korea launched suspected ballistic missiles into the sea on Tuesday in an apparent weapons test, its neighbors said, as Pyongyang raised tensions with rival South Korea ahead of a key political gathering.
The Japanese Prime Minister’s Office and the Japanese Ministry of Defense announced that North Korea had fired ballistic missiles. South Korea’s defense ministry said it had detected the launch of at least one unidentified craft from North Korea’s east coast. Neither country immediately released details, such as how far the North Korean weapons had traveled.
Tuesday’s launch came after North Korea recently threatened retaliation over what it said were flights of South Korean reconnaissance drones across the border, one in January and another in September. South Korea’s government has denied using drones in the periods North Korea alleges and has launched an investigation to determine whether they may have been sent by civilians.
Analysts say Pyongyang’s drone accusations are likely motivated by the regime’s bid to boost anti-South Korean sentiment ahead of the ruling Workers’ Party congress, which is expected to begin in late January or February. At the congress, the first in five years, the North could incorporate in the party statutes the statement of leader Kim Jong Un about the hostile “two-state” system on the Korean peninsula.
Earlier this month, North Korea said it had conducted test flights of hypersonic missiles. Kim oversaw the launches and, according to North Korean state media, stressed the need to strengthen the country’s nuclear deterrent.
In December, North Korea tested what it called long-range strategic cruise missiles and new anti-aircraft missiles, and released photos purportedly showing the construction of its first nuclear submarine.
According to analysts, North Korea is seeking to demonstrate or recapitulate its achievements in weapons development ahead of the party congress.
(Vijesti.ba)
