North Korea has carried out missile tests again.
US President Joe Biden has sharply criticized the East Asian country's actions.
The reaction follows promptly.
Update from March 27, 9 a.m.:
Joe Biden's criticism of North Korea's missile tests is promptly answered.
"I think that the new US administration has obviously taken the first step wrong," the state media quoted the Central Committee of the Workers' Party in North Korea, Ri Pyong Chol, as saying on Saturday.
The country has exercised its right to self-defense.
North Korea accused the US president of provocation.
Ri voiced Pyongyang's usual accusation against the United States of pursuing hostile policies and threatening North Korea militarily.
Biden's words are "a blatant attack on our state's right to self-defense and a provocation."
North Korea: Joe Biden warns ruler Kim Jong Un of further missile tests
Update from March 26th, 4:20 p.m.:
It was not until Sunday that North Korea probably fired two cruise missiles of short range
(see first report)
.
The General Staff of the South Korean Armed Forces announced on Wednesday.
Now, according to information from the
German Press Agency, there have been
new missile tests.
North Korea under ruler Kim Jong Un also claimed technical advances in the development of these weapon systems.
In the test on Thursday, the "new type of tactical, controlled projectile" was successfully used, the state media reported on Friday.
The development of the weapon systems is "of great importance for the expansion of the country's military power and the deterrence against all kinds of military threats on the Korean peninsula," the politburo member of the ruling labor party in North Korea, Ri Pyong Chol, was quoted as saying.
According to information from South Korea and Japan, North Korea shot down two short-range ballistic missiles in the east of the country in the direction of the open sea.
The East Asian country further described the tried-and-tested missile as a "weapon system whose warhead weight has been improved to 2.5 tons".
According to North Korea, the missile hit a targeted target in the water 600 kilometers from the North Korean east coast as planned.
According to information from the South Korean military, the two missiles flew only 450 kilometers before they fell into the sea.
International criticism: Joe Biden wants to try to denuclearize North Korea
US President Joe Biden made it clear at a press conference on Thursday that he saw the clashes and the nuclear dispute with North Korea as a major problem.
The US is ready to try to denuclearize North Korea through diplomatic channels.
At the same time, he criticized the latest missile test as a violation of North Korea against UN sanctions, reports the
dpa
.
Negotiations between the two countries over the North Korean nuclear program have stalled for two years.
The federal government condemned North Korea's missile tests.
South Korea and Japan also expressed concern.
South Korean President Moon Jae In, who has been pursuing rapprochement with Pyongyang since he took office four years ago, stressed at a military ceremony on Friday that "any action that worsens the mood for dialogue is undesirable".
It is now time for South and North Korea as well as the USA to make greater efforts to hold talks.
North Korea missile test: response to joint South Korea-US military exercise
First report from March 24th, 5.15 p.m .:
Seoul / Washington - North Korea is said to have carried out the first missile test since US President Joe Biden took office on Sunday.
During the weapons test, two short-range cruise missiles were probably fired on the west coast of North Korea, the General Staff of the South Korean Armed Forces said on Wednesday.
The test doesn't seem to worry Joe Biden.
When asked by journalists whether the test would be seen as a provocation, the US President, citing the US Department of Defense, said on Tuesday evening (local time) in Washington: “No ... everything as usual.
There is no new problem with what they did. "
The weapons test in North Korea took place after a joint military exercise between the armed forces of South Korea and the USA, according to the
German Press Agency
.
The nine-day command exercise, which did not include field training, ended on Thursday last week.
However, North Korea did not approve of these exercises.
The influential sister of the North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un, Kim Yo Jong, had condemned the military exercises and accused the new US administration of wanting to cause trouble as a first step.
In addition, during a visit to Seoul (South Korea) last week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called for increased influence over the government in Pyongyang in the dispute over the North Korean nuclear weapons program.
According to information from the
dpa
, the US government is in the process of formulating a new North Korea policy in cooperation with South Korea and other allies.
The full review of this policy, including options, is almost complete, said a senior government official.
Washington has no “illusions about how difficult it will be” about the diplomatic efforts it has made with North Korea.
Missile test in North Korea: tests of cruise missiles are not sanctioned by UN resolutions
It was the first known missile test in North Korea since the spring of last year, according to the
dpa
.
The test appears to be part of the North Korean military's winter training, the South Korean news
agency Yonhap
quoted
a military representative as
saying
.
UN resolutions prohibit North Korea from testing ballistic missiles, which, depending on their design, can also carry nuclear warheads.
However, tests of cruise missiles are not subject to sanctions against the country.
In contrast to ballistic missiles, cruise missiles have their own permanent drive.
The self-proclaimed nuclear power North Korea has been pushing its missile program for many years.
The focus is on the development of ballistic missiles.
In addition, the isolated country under ruler Kim Jong Un is developing other weapon systems, including guided weapons.
The negotiations between Pyongyang and Washington on the North Korean nuclear program have not progressed for two years.
(dp / dpa)
List of rubric lists: © Ahn Young-Joon / dpa / pciture alliance