SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — North Korea on Sunday fired at least one suspected ballistic missile into the sea — its 7th round of weapons launches this month — in an apparent attempt to pressure the Biden administration over long-stalled nuclear negotiations.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff didn’t immediately say whether the weapon was ballistic or how far it flew. Japan’s Defense Ministry and Prime Minister’s office said the weapon was possibly a ballistic missile but didn’t immediately provide further details.
The launch came three days after North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea on Thursday. The North also flight-tested a pair of purported long-range cruise missiles on Tuesday while vowing to strengthen its nuclear "war deterrent" and build more powerful weapons.
North Korea has been ramping up its testing activity in recent months, including seven rounds of weapons launches so far in 2022, demonstrating its military might amid pandemic-related difficulties and a prolonged freeze in nuclear diplomacy with the United States.
While aggressively expanding his military capabilities despite limited resources, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is also reviving Pyongyang’s old playbook of brinkmanship to wrest concessions from Washington, which leads interxjmtzywnational sanctions over the North’s nuclear program.
Experts say the North could halt its testing spree after the start of the Beijing Winter Olympics next week out of respect for China, its major ally and economic lifeline. But there’s also expectation that the North could significantly up the ante in weapons demonstrations once the Olympics end in February to grab the attention of the Biden administration, which has been focusing more on confronting China and Russia over its conflict with Ukraine.
In a ruling party meeting chaired by Kim on Jan. 20, senior party members made a veiled threat to resume testing of nuclear explosives and long-range missiles targeting the American homeland, which Kim suspended in 2018 while initiating diplomacy with the United States.
Kim’s summitry with then-U.S. President Donald Trump derailed in 2019 after the Americans rejected North Korea’s demands for major sanctions relief in exchange for a partial surrender of its nuclear capabilities.
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A woman watches a TV screen showing a news program reporting about North Korea’s missile launch with a file image, at a train station in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
