Supervised by Kim: North Korea conducted a second test within a week on a supersonic missile

For the first time in almost two years, the leader was present at the launch of a missile and called on military scientists to accelerate technological developments.

Supersonic weapons can bypass defense systems, and South Korea and the United States have strongly condemned the experiment. "We said we were open to dialogue, and they were launching missiles."

News agencies

11/01/2022

Tuesday, 11 January 2022, 05:01 Updated: Wednesday, 12 January 2022, 09:51

• Share on Facebook

• Share on WhatsApp

• Share on Twitter

• Share on Email

• Share on general

• Comments

  Comments

Its presence indicates the importance it attaches to supersonic weapons.

Kim watches launch, Tuesday (Photo: Reuters)

North Korea has conducted a sonic missile test off the east coast, and North Korea's official media reported tonight (Wednesday) that leader Kim Jong Un oversaw the launch and called for strengthening his country's strategic defense forces.

This is the first time in nearly two years that he has been present at the launch.

The previous time was in March 2020.

The launch was identified by the authorities in South Korea and Japan on Tuesday, and received widespread condemnation around the world and the UN's concern. Of his regime, against the background of the stalemate in talks with South Korea and the United States.

According to North Korea's official news agency, Kim called on military scientists to "further accelerate efforts to strengthen the country's strategic military muscles, both in terms of quality and quantity, and to further upgrade the military."

Experts said the announcement of Kim's presence at the launch underscores the importance he attaches to supersonic technology, which is being developed by the world's major powers.

The UN Security Council has banned North Korea from launching ballistic missiles and conducting nuclear tests, and it has imposed sanctions on Pyongyang in recent years. "Theirs, which includes sanctions and military exercises.

The international community condemned the experiment.

The latest launch of the supersonic missile (Photo: Reuters)

Victoria Noland, the United States' secretary of state, said recent launches were dangerous and undermined regional stability. "Obviously this is a dangerous direction," she warned at a news briefing in Washington yesterday. "As you know, the United States has been saying since this administration arose that we are open to dialogue with North Korea, that we are open to talking about the corona and humanitarian aid, and instead they are launching missiles."

The EU said North Korea's latest launch was a "threat to international peace and security" and called on Pyongyang to return to the negotiating table.

Despite their name, experts say that the most striking feature of supersonic weapons is not their speed - conventional ballistic missiles can reach this speed and even exceed it - but their maneuverability, which makes them a threat to missile defense systems. Experts said the photos released from the latest launch by the official media show that it was the same missile and the same warhead as those first tested last week.

The official Korean news agency reported that the second launch was intended to give "the latest verification to the general technical capabilities of the supersonic weapon system." It was further reported that the missile "slid" to a distance of 600 km and then performed a "traffic jumper maneuver" at a distance of 240 km before hitting a target at sea at a distance of a thousand km.

South Korean officials questioned the missile's capabilities after the first launch last week, saying it did not appear to have actually reached the distance and maneuver reported by the North Korean official media.

However, they said in Seoul yesterday that the missile appears to have recorded better performance in the second launch when it reached a speed ten times the speed of the sound - 12,348 km / h - although they did not address its maneuverability.

• news

• World news

• Asia and the Pacific

Tags

• South Korea

• North Korea

• Kim jong un