SEOUL, South Korea – North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile into the sea on Sunday, its neighbors said, stepping up testing efforts in response to the ongoing US and South Korean military exercises which he sees as an invasion attempt.
The North’s continued missile testing has shown its determination to not back down despite the US-South Korea exercise, which is the largest of its kind in years. But many experts say the tests are also part of North Korea’s larger goal of expanding its weapons arsenal, gaining worldwide recognition as a nuclear state, and lifting international sanctions.
A missile launched from the northwest Tongchangri area in the north flew over the country before landing in waters off its eastern coast, based on South Korean and Japanese assessments. They said the missile traveled a distance of about 800 kilometers (500 miles), suggesting the weapon could goal South Korea.
The highest nuclear emissaries from South Korea, Japan and the US discussed the missile launch over the phone and strongly condemned it as a provocation that threatens peace on the Korean peninsula and the region. They agreed to strengthen their coordination to issue a strong international response to the North’s actions, based on the Seoul Foreign Ministry.
![American B-1B bombers fly in formation with South Korean F-35A fighters.](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/AP23078227540062.jpg?w=1024)
![US Army helicopter transports M777 howitzer.](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/AP23078276851957.jpg?w=1024)
South Korea’s military has said it’s going to conduct remaining joint exercises with the U.S. thoroughly and maintain its readiness to reply “overwhelmingly” to any provocation from North Korea. In accordance with the South Korean Defense Ministry, as part of the exercise, the US on Sunday flew long-range B-1B bombers for joint training with South Korean warplanes.
North Korea could be very vulnerable to the deployment of B-1Bs, that are capable of carrying a huge load of conventional weapons. It responded to February’s B-1B flights with test missiles that showed potential strike ranges on some South Korean air bases.
Japanese Deputy Defense Minister Toshiro Ino said the missile landed outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone and there have been no reports of damage to ships or aircraft. He said the missile likely showed an irregular trajectory, which could also be a reference to North Korea’s highly maneuverable, nuclear-capable KN-23 missile, modeled on the Russian Iskander missile.
The US Indo-Pacific Command said the latest launch didn’t pose an instantaneous threat to US territory or its allies. Nevertheless, it said the North’s recent launches underscore the “destabilizing impact of its illicit” weapons programs and that the US’s commitment to the security of South Korea and Japan stays “iron”.
![American soldiers train in Pocheon, South Korea.](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/AP23078277288794.jpg?w=1024)
![Army soldiers work on the M777 howitzer.](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/AP23078274226080.jpg?w=1024)
The launch was the North’s third round of weapons testing since the U.S. and South Korean militaries began joint military exercises last Monday. The exercise, which incorporates computer simulations and field exercises, is anticipated to run until Thursday. The sector exercise is the largest of its kind since 2018.
A weapon recently tested by North Korea the Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile with the longest range, designed to strike the American continent. Northern state media quoted leader Kim Jong Un as saying that the launch of the intercontinental ballistic missile was “to strike fear into enemies.”
Thursday’s launch, the North’s first ICBM in a month, sparked strong protests in Seoul, Tokyo and Washington. It was conducted just hours before South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol flew to Tokyo for a closely watched summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
During Yoon and Kishida’s rush agreed to resume defense dialogue and further enhance security cooperation with the United States to counter North Korea and other challenges.
![Kim Jong Un](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/AP23078084909401.jpg?w=1024)
Relations between Seoul and Tokyo have seriously deteriorated in recent times attributable to problems arising from Japan’s colonial rule from 1910-45 on the Korean Peninsula.
But North Korea’s record-breaking string of missile tests last yr – greater than 70 missiles were fired in 2022 alone – has prompted Seoul and Tokyo to hunt a stronger trilateral security partnership involving Washington, which also desires to bolster its alliances in Asia to raised deal with with China’s development and North Korea’s nuclear threats.
North Korea has missiles that put Japan inside striking range. Last October, North Korea fired a medium-range missile over northern Japan, forcing communities there to issue evacuation warnings and stop trains.
In accordance with Ino, Japan’s deputy defense minister, after Sunday’s launch, Kishida ordered a quick response, including close cooperation with South Korea and the United States.