North Korea claimed to have fired this Monday, February 20, two missiles capable, according to it, of a “tactical nuclear attack” capable of completely destroying enemy airbases.
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This is the second North Korean launch in 48 hours, after the launch of one of its most powerful intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) on Saturday in response to a military exercise planned by Washington and Seoul. The launch of this ICBM, which Tokyo says fell in Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), led Washington and Seoul to organize joint air maneuvers on Sunday.
“deterrent capability”
According to North Korea’s official KCNA news agency, the” exercise “ of this Monday was carried out in response to these aerial exercises, Pyongyang accusing the two allies of being responsible for the deterioration of the security situation in the peninsula.
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North Korea used “super-large multiple rocket launchers”which constitute “tactical nuclear means of attack”which allowed “the Korean People’s Army (to demonstrate) its full deterrent capability and its will to counter” the joint U.S.-South Korean air exercises on Sunday.
Unlike Pyongyang, the United States usually refers to these rockets as “short-range ballistic missiles”explains the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington-based think tank.
“Serious provocation”
The South Korean army had thus claimed to have detected the firing of two short-range ballistic missiles on Monday between 7 a.m. and 7:11 a.m. (11 p.m. Sunday evening, Paris time) which traveled a distance of 390 km for the one and 340 km for the other before falling into the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan.
Seoul called the launch of “serious provocation that undermines the peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula” and called on Pyongyang to put an end to it ” immediately “. At the request of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the United Nations Security Council will meet urgently on Tuesday afternoon in New York.
“There is trivialization, distraction and disunity that benefits North Korea and pushes it to carry out its missile launches”
In a statement released on Monday morning, the North Korean leader’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, warned that Pyongyang would continue to monitor moves by Washington and Seoul to deploy more US strategic assets in the region, promising to take measures. “corresponding countermeasures” to any perceived threat.
“The frequency of use of the Pacific as a firing range depends on the type of action of the American forces”she put forward in a press release published by KCNA.
“Surprise” exercise
Pyongyang claimed its ICBM firing on Saturday was part of a drill ” surprise “ who he says has demonstrated his ability to “deadly nuclear counter-attack”. Japan clarified that this ICBM flew for 66 minutes before falling back into its exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
In response, Seoul and Washington held joint aerial exercises on Sunday, mobilizing a strategic bomber and stealth fighter jets. This launch was “firmly” condemned by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, his spokesman said on Sunday, urging Pyongyang to end its “provocative actions”.
North Korea praised its soldiers for carrying out the“sudden firing exercise” on Saturday, but South Korean experts pointed out that the nine-hour delay between order and launch was not particularly fast. Kim Yo Jong dismissed these criticisms, describing them as “an attempt to underestimate the readiness of ballistic forces” from Pyongyang.
The North’s launches, carried out despite heavy international sanctions on its weapons programs, came just before the start of joint drills between Seoul and Washington scheduled for later this week to improve their response in the event of an attack. North Korean nuclear attack.
Last week, Pyongyang warned that it would react with vigor ” unprecedented “ to the upcoming exercises, which he describes as preparations for war Relations between Pyongyang and Seoul are already at their lowest level in years. In 2022, the North called“irreversible” its status as a nuclear power and Kim Jong Un called for a growth “exponential” the production of armaments, in particular tactical nuclear weapons.
