The firing of this “new type” of ICBM, as described by the North Korean state agency KCNA, was personally ordered by Kim Jong Un.
The missile, dubbed Hwasong-17 and dubbed the “monster missile” by military analysts, perfectly hit its target in the Sea of Japan: “The missile, launched from Pyongyang International Airport, reached a maximum altitude of 6,248, 5 km and covered a distance of 1,090 km for 4,052 seconds before accurately hitting the predefined area,” KCNA said.
Sign, if it were still necessary, of the megalomaniac propensity of Kim Jong Un, the latter staged during the test. Thus, on the images broadcast by the North Korean media, he appears wearing a leather jacket, walking in slow motion and seems to be coordinating the maneuver, all once morest a backdrop of solemn music.
A risk of escalation
This is “a break from the moratorium on the launch of intercontinental ballistic missiles to which President Kim Jong Un” had committed in 2017, lamented the President of South Korea, Moon Jae-in.
The South Korean military said it responded by firing “missiles from the ground, sea and air” off its coast.
The UN on Thursday “strongly” condemned the shooting and called on Pyongyang to cease any action deemed “counterproductive” and which stokes “tensions” in Asia.
