North Korea Launches Ballistic missile Following security Talks
Southโ Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed that Northโข Korea fired at least one short-range ballistic โmissile towards its eastern waters on Friday. The missile travelled approximately 700km (435 miles) in the direction of the East Sea,also known as the seaโ of Japan.
The launch occurred just โdays after United States Defenseโ secretary Pete Hegseth concluded annual securityโค talks in South Korea. Japan’s government also detected the launch and indicated the missile likely landed outsideโค of Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
This latest action follows a series of recent events, including Pyongyang firing ten rounds of artillery intoโ western waters fourโ days prior.It also comes approximately a week after the United States granted โSouth Korea permission โฃto build โขa nuclear-powered submarine – a move expected to significantly bolster south Korea’s naval defense capabilities. Seoul is seeking enriched uranium from the US to fuelโ the domestically-built submarine.
Despite effortsโ by South Korean President Lee Jaeโฃ Myungโฃ and US President Donald Trump to re-establish dialogue with North Korean leader Kimโ jong Un, Kim has remained unresponsive to talks since the collapse of previous US-North โฃKorea negotiations in 2019. Kim has stated his willingness to consider talks only if the US โabandons demands for the denuclearization of North korea, repeatedly asserting his country’s status as a “irreversible” nuclear state.
Recent โdevelopments also point to strengthening military cooperation between North Korea and Russia. North Korea’s โฃstate news โagency, KCNA, reported a meeting between Pak Yong Il, a North Korean military official, and a Russianโ delegation led by vice Defense minister Viktor Goremykin on Wednesday. Discussions focused on expanding โties following agreements made between Kim Jong Un and russian President Vladimir Putin.
South Korea’s intelligence agency โฃhas also detected potentialโข recruitment and training activities within North Korea,suggesting a possible increase in troop deployments to Russia.โ Seoul estimates that Pyongyang has already sent approximately 15,000 soldiers to Russia to support its war in Ukraine, with a critically important number reportedly suffering casualties. Additionally, around โ5,000 North Korean military construction troops have been dispatched to Russia since September to assist with infrastructure restorationโ projects.