Seoul: N Korea fires projectile in 6th launch this month

3 yıl önce

SEOUL, South Korea â South Koreaâs military says North Korea has fired at least one unidentified projectile into the sea in its sixth weapons launch this month.

South Koreaâs Joint Chiefs of Staff on Thursday didnât immediately say whether the projectile was a ballistic missile or how far it flew.

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North Korea has upped its testing activity recently in an apparent effort to pressure the Biden administration amid long-stalled nuclear talks.

The renewed pressure comes as the pandemic further shakes the Northâs economy, which was already battered by crippling U.S.-led sanctions over its nuclear weapons program and decades of mismanagement by its own government.

The North last week issued a veiled threat to resume the testing of nuclear explosives and long-range missiles targeting the American homeland, which leader Kim Jong Un suspended in 2018 while initiating diplomacy with the United States.

Kimâs high-stakes summitry with former President Donald Trump derailed in 2019 due to disagreements over sanctions relief and denuclearization.

Some experts say North Korea could dramatically escalate weapons demonstrations after the Winter Olympics, which begin Feb. 4 in China, the Northâs main ally and economic lifeline.

They say Pyongyangâs leadership likely feels it could use a dramatic provocation to move the needle with the Biden administration, which has offered open-ended talks but showed no willingness to ease sanctions unless Kim takes real steps to abandon the nuclear weapons and missiles he sees as his strongest guarantee of survival.