With the U.S. and Western powers pre-occupied with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, North Korea is flexing its muscles in the Pacific.
The Communist dictatorship reportedly tested its longest-range intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) ever on Thursday. The missile, which flew around 680 miles before falling in the Sea of Japan, has a maximum range of over 3,700 mile and is capable of striking the U.S. mainland, news reports suggest.
The Hwasong-17 missile, dubbed “monster missile” by North Korea and is world’s largest road-mobile liquid propellant missile, the regime-controlled media claimed.
The missile launch indicates heightened military build up by North Korea since President Joe Biden took office. In January 2022, the Communist dictatorship reportedly tested a series of hypersonic missiles that were apparently capable of evading detection by most U.S. and Western air defense systems.
The Reuters reported the North Korean missile test:
North Korea said on Friday its launch of a big new intercontinental ballistic missile this week was designed to demonstrate the might of its nuclear force and deter any U.S. military moves.The United States responded by saying it would push the U.N. Security Council to “update and strengthen” sanctions on North Korea over its “increasingly dangerous provocations,” a move Pyongyang’s allies China and Russia are likely to oppose.Thursday’s launch was the first full ICBM test by nuclear-armed North Korea since 2017. Flight data indicated the missile flew higher and for a longer period than any of North Korea’s previous tests before crashing into the sea west of Japan. read moreWhat North Korea calls the Hwasong-17 would be the largest liquid-fuelled missile ever launched by any country from a road-mobile launcher, analysts say.
The North Korean television celebrated the launch with a Hollywood-style footage, showing country’s dictator Kim Jong-un walking in front of the huge ICBM sporting a leather jacket and sunglasses, mimicking Tom Cruise in the movie Top Gun.
The North Korean regime hailed the missile test as a challenge to the United States. Pyongyang is “fully ready to thoroughly check and contain any dangerous military attempts of the US imperialists,” the regime declared. This is the first long-range missile test by the regime since 2017.
The Biden administration reacted to the missile test by urging the United Nations to put more sanctions on North Korea. “At a U.N. Security Council meeting Friday, U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said the U.S. would propose a resolution “to update and strengthen” Security Council sanctions. She declined to specify what those new measures might be, The Associated Press reported. China and Russia opposed any such move against North Korea, their geostrategic ally.
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