South Korea detected several cruise missiles launched this Wednesday by its North Korean neighbor towards the Sea of Japan.
"Our military detected several unknown cruise missiles in the waters northeast of Wonsan around 9 a.m. (local time) and South Korean and U.S. intelligence services are conducting detailed analysis," the Joint Chiefs of Staff said. South Korean Joint Forces (JCS), adding that it was "closely monitoring any additional signs or activities from North Korea."
Since the start of the year, Kim Jong-un, Russia's ally, has delivered an increasingly bellicose speech towards his southern neighbor.
The dictator declared South Korea his “main enemy” and closed agencies dedicated to reunification.
And to warn that it could go to war for any territorial violation.
In January, North Korea fired about 200 artillery shells near two South Korean border islands, prompting a live-fire exercise by the South and evacuation orders for residents.
To flex its muscles, Pyongyang has increased its testing of military equipment, including testing what it has described as an “undersea nuclear weapons system” and a solid-fuel hypersonic ballistic missile.
At the start of the week, a new multiple rocket launcher control system was being tested to significantly strengthen its defense capabilities.
The Moscow-Pyongyang link worries
Furthermore, the development of these cruise missiles could serve Russia for use in the conflict in Ukraine.
Pyongyang and Moscow have strengthened ties and in September, leader Kim Jong-un made a rare trip to Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin.
South Korea and the United States maintain that despite UN sanctions, the North is sending weapons to Russia, possibly in exchange for technical assistance with its spy satellite program.
“North Korea is believed to have exported large quantities of multiple rocket launchers to Russia last year,” said Ahn Chan-il, a defector-turned-researcher who heads the Global Institute for Korea Studies North.
He said it is possible that some of these weapons had quality problems, and the recent tests could be "steps to resolve the problem."
With the U.S. presidential election scheduled for November, the North may step up its provocations to take advantage of political uncertainty in the United States, Cheong Seong-chang, a researcher at the Sejong Institute, wrote in a report.
North Korea could “carry out attacks on the (South Korean) islands of Baengnyeong, Daecheong and Socheong based on its confidence in the advancement of its nuclear and missile capabilities,” he said.
These three islands in the Yellow Sea are very close to the North Korean coast.