North Korea fires ballistic missile into Sea of Japan amid fears of nuclear-equipped ICBM tests
As of now, the South Korean military has not provided details regarding the detected missile or its flight trajectory.
11:02 AM EST, December 17, 2023
Military provocations by North Korea
Kim Tae-hyo, the deputy advisor to the South Korean president on national security, issued a warning earlier this week. He suggested that North Korea might conduct an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test, potentially equipped with a nuclear warhead this December, as reported by the Yonhap agency.
Based on a brief by the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the South Korean army, North Korea's previous missile test, which took place on November 22, most probably concluded in failure.
An annual report recently published by analysts from the Korean Institute of National Unification (KINU) put forward the possibility of North Korea resorting to military provocations and psychological warfare. The report speculated that these tactics could be aimed at influencing the 2024 presidential elections in the US as well as the parliamentary elections in South Korea.
On Saturday, the United States issued a stern warning to North Korea. The US stated that any nuclear attack on them or their allies would result in a "swift, overwhelming, and decisive response." This would lead to the "end of the Kim Jong Un regime."
According to commentators, North Korea has developed and tested several ballistic missiles which potentially could hit targets in South Korea, Japan, and even the continental US. North Korean media referred to some of the missile tests as simulations of nuclear attacks on alleged "enemies."
