North Korea is testing cruise missiles for the first time in months.
An expert warns of nuclear danger.
The neighboring states fear further armament.
Pyongyang / Munich - After a long break, North Korea is again causing unrest in the Far East with missile tests. Over the weekend, the isolated country tested two new types of cruise missiles with a "long range". North Korea's state media reported on Monday that they hit their targets in the sea 1,500 kilometers away after a two-hour flight. It is a "strategic weapon of great importance". According to experts, the self-proclaimed nuclear power indicated that the new guided missile should also carry nuclear warheads. It was the first such test since the end of March.
Unlike other missile tests in North Korea, the launch of the cruise missiles did not violate United Nations rules.
Several 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.
Unlike ballistic missiles, cruise missiles have their own permanent propulsion system.
North Korea's cruise missiles: nuclear warhead threat
Cruise missiles are less dangerous than ballistic missiles, Hwang Jae-ho, director of the Global Security Cooperation Center at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Seoul, told the
South China Morning Post
.
But with a small nuclear warhead they could be a major threat.
If Pyongyang equips the new cruise missile "with a deadly nuclear warhead, the neighboring countries will certainly be nervous".
The type now tested is North Korea's "first long-range cruise missile (1,000 km +) and the first claimed nuclear-capable cruise missile," wrote the expert Ankit Panda on Twitter.
The country itself did not explicitly speak of a nuclear-weapon capable cruise missile, but "Analysts know what North Korea means when it says 'strategic'."
North Korea: unrest in the region after testing cruise missiles
And so the neighbors are quite worried.
Japan expressed concern - also because the allegedly new type of cruise missile could reach Japanese territory.
North Korea's behavior "endangers peace and security in the region," said government spokesman Katsunobu Kato in Tokyo.
On Monday, China called on all sides to exercise restraint and dialogue.
This should push the process towards a political solution, said Foreign Office spokesman Zhao Lijian in Beijing.
China is regarded as North Korea's closest ally - but Beijing's influence is also limited.
In recent years, China has never been able to dissuade North Korea's ruler Kim Jong-un from using the atomic bomb, any more than his father, Kim Jong-il, before.
In addition, according to a report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) last week, North Korea has apparently been operating the nuclear reactor at the Yongbyon nuclear center again since the beginning of July. According to the assessment of the former German diplomat Thomas Schäfer, this represents a challenge for the USA. "I believe that North Korea wants to slowly increase tensions again," said the former ambassador in Pyongyang in an interview with the German Press Agency in Seoul.
The US Indo-Pacific Command stated after the tests that the situation was being monitored in close cooperation with the Allies.
The renewed missile test made it clear that North Korea was continuing to focus on "developing its military program," it said.
He confirmed the "threats to his neighbors and the international community".
South Korea did not initially confirm the neighboring country's tests.
The South Korean General Staff only announced that the information would be investigated in cooperation with the United States.
China and Co: Talks between the neighbors in the region about North Korea
This week, representatives of the USA, Japan and South Korea are meeting in Tokyo to talk about North Korea - according to reports from regional media, the topic of disarmament should also be on the table.
China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi is also expected to hold talks with his South Korean counterpart Chung Eui-yong this week - there, too, is likely to be about North Korea's nuclear ambitions, which both countries are concerned about.
North Korea sees "hostile" US policies
Pyongyang accuses the United States in particular of having hostile policies. As was the case a few months earlier, the latest weapon tests were carried out after joint military exercises by the armed forces of the USA and South Korea. North Korea also undertook the cruise missile tests in March after such a joint command exercise in South Korea. A test with short-range ballistic missiles also followed a few days later. Missiles that can target warheads over distances of 1,000 to 2,700 kilometers are usually referred to as medium-range missiles.
For years, North Korea has been promoting the development of missiles that not only hit South Korea and Japan, but can also carry nuclear warheads as far as the USA. It is therefore subject to severe international sanctions, which also hamper the country's economic development. The negotiations between the USA and North Korea about its nuclear program have been stuck for a good two and a half years. In February 2019, a summit meeting between former US President Donald Trump and North Korea's ruler Kim Jong-un in Vietnam failed.
(ck / dpa)