North Korea fired a ballistic missile into the sea on Tuesday as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken held meetings in Seoul, South Korea. The missile was launched eastward around noon local time, or 03:00 GMT, shortly after Blinken had finished his talks with South Korean Acting President Choi Sang-mok.
South Korea’s military confirmed the launch, identifying the projectile as an intermediate-range ballistic missile. It traveled approximately 1,100 kilometers (680 miles) before landing in waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. In response, Seoul has heightened its surveillance and readiness for potential further launches.
The missile, according to the report of Japan’s Ministry of Defense, has apparently landed into the water; however, this missile fell outside the exclusive economic zone of Japan and did not cause any harm to vessels or aircraft. In regard to this incident, South Korean military claimed that it maintains close coordination with both the U.S. and Japan.
During a joint news conference, Blinken and South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul condemned the missile launch, calling it “another violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions.” It was North Korea’s first missile launch since November 5, when it fired multiple short-range missiles from its east coast.
The timing is important, happening just weeks before Donald Trump takes office in the U.S. Analysts pointed out that this comes at a time when North Korea has been relatively quiet, especially after a political crisis in South Korea, where President Yoon Suk Yeol was impeached after declaring martial law.
In his remarks, Blinken reiterated the U.S. commitment to the defense of South Korea and met with Acting President Choi to discuss ways to deepen bilateral and trilateral cooperation with Japan. Until recently, Yoon had been a strong supporter of the Biden administration, speaking out in favor of better relations with Japan, another U.S. ally.
In specifying South Korea’s adherence to the principles agreed upon at the Camp David Summit, Choi stressed that the country emphasizes its commitment to keep its diplomatic and security policies based on a strong U.S.-Korea alliance and trilateral cooperation with Japan.
In related developments, Blinken expressed concerns regarding expanding cooperation between Russia and North Korea, suggesting that Russia is providing military equipment and training to North Korea and may share advanced space and satellite technology in return for North Korean support in the conflict in Ukraine. He said that more than 1,000 North Korean soldiers have reportedly been killed or injured in the current war, and he hinted that Russia may be on the brink of recognizing North Korea as a nuclear power.
