By Le Figaro with AFP
Posted 1 hour ago, updated 39 minutes ago
In this image released by North Korea’s Central News Agency on July 13, 2023, the Hwasong-18 ICBM is launched from an undisclosed location in North Korea. KCNA/Portal
The rocket was thrown into the East Sea. A launch that comes in the context of a rapprochement between Washington and Seoul.
North Korea fired a ballistic missile into the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency said on Wednesday, citing South Korean military personnel.
According to Japanese news agency Kyodo, the launch, which comes at a time when Seoul and Washington have stepped up their defense cooperation amid rising tensions between the two Koreas, was also reported by the Japan Coast Guard.
A series of missile tests
According to Yonhap, the South Korean military said it was still in the process of analyzing the type of missile fired. The launch is the latest in a series of missile tests by Pyongyang and comes less than a week after leader Kim Jong-un personally oversaw the launch of the country’s newest ICBM, the solid-propellant Hwasong-18.
Relations between the two Koreas are currently at an all-time low as diplomatic ties between Pyongyang and Seoul have stalled and Kim Jong-un has called for an acceleration in the development of weapons, including tactical nuclear weapons. In response, Seoul and Washington have stepped up defense cooperation and held major joint military exercises.
The missile launch also came as Washington confirmed on Tuesday that an American soldier was likely captured by North Korean soldiers after crossing the fortified and heavily guarded border separating the two Koreas.