© KEYSTONE/FR171313 AP/MATT HARTMAN
North Korea fired an “unidentified projectile”, the South Korean army announced on Sunday, without giving further details, following a month of lull, without launch, during the Beijing Olympics. The missile was launched in an easterly direction.
Pyongyang conducted an unprecedented series of seven missile launches in January, including the most powerful missile since 2017. The regime also warned that it might waive the moratorium it had imposed on itself. intercontinental ballistic missiles and nuclear testing.
But North Korea appears to have halted testing during the 2022 Winter Olympics, perhaps out of respect for its Chinese ally, experts say.
Pyongyang’s demonstrations of strength come at a delicate time in the region, as South Korea prepares to elect its next president on March 9.
Analysts believe Pyongyang might use the upcoming anniversary – the 110th anniversary of Kim Il-sung’s birth on April 15 – to conduct a major weapons test.