North Korea's ICMB Launch Likely This Week... Weather a Variable

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] As North Korea's likelihood of test-firing an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) this week increases, Sung Kim, the U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Policy, has urged China to publicly condemn the act.

On the 13th (local time), the U.S. State Department confirmed in a press release that Representative Kim and Liu Xiaoming (劉曉明), China's Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Affairs, had a phone call on the 10th, during which "Representative Kim strongly condemned North Korea's missile launch." This was their first phone conversation since the 22nd of last month.

The recent U.S.-China phone call was initiated to condemn North Korea's performance tests of a new ICBM conducted on February 26 and earlier this month on the 4th. The State Department added that it urged China to persuade North Korea to cease provocative actions and return to dialogue.

South Korea and the U.S. anticipate that North Korea may conduct an additional performance test of the new ICBM as early as the beginning of this week. If another launch occurs, it is expected to test the new ICBM's performance using a transporter erector launcher (TEL), similar to the previous two launches. However, weather conditions are expected to be the biggest variable.

On the 12th, Suh Hoon, Director of the National Security Office, reportedly informed President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol that "North Korea's additional missile launch is imminent." The Blue House stated, "We briefed on recent North Korean activities such as missile test launches and the situation in Ukraine, and we will continue cooperation to respond thoroughly to diplomatic and security issues during the government transition period."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.