Presidential Office: "North Korea's Provocation Judged as a Scenario Increasing the Possibility of the 7th Nuclear Test"

"North Korea's Ballistic Missile Launch Violates Security Council Resolution"

On the 16th, one day before President Yoon Suk-yeol's 100th day in office, the Presidential Office building in Yongsan-gu, Seoul is shown. President Yoon, emphasizing the elimination of authoritarianism, moved the seat of government from the former Blue House to Yongsan. With the president's office relocated to Yongsan, the Blue House has been fully opened to the public. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] On the 5th, the Presidential Office stated regarding North Korea's successive provocations, including the launch of an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM), "We believe that North Korea is following a step-by-step scenario to increase the possibility of a 7th nuclear test."

A senior official from the Presidential Office said to reporters at the Yongsan Presidential Office in the afternoon, "Considering the recent series of events, North Korea's missile range continues to increase, and the missile-related platforms are changing."

He added, "Regarding North Korea's recent consecutive ballistic missile launches, South Korea and the United States are closely communicating and cooperating in real-time at all levels, including foreign ministers and national security advisors."

Regarding North Korea's repeated ballistic missile launches, he defined them as "a clear violation of the United Nations Security Council resolutions and a serious threat to the Korean Peninsula and the international community." In particular, he emphasized, "Our government will further strengthen the cooperation between South Korea, the United States, and Japan, and work closely with the international community to make North Korea recognize that reckless provocations will inevitably have consequences."

When asked by reporters whether tactical nuclear weapons are included in the South Korea-U.S.-Japan response measures, he reiterated, "President Yoon maintains the position that extended deterrence comprehensively covers all packages that can deter North Korea's nuclear provocations," and "South Korea and the United States are closely consulting and considering revolutionary changes to extended deterrence."

In response to the question, "There was a call between the U.S. and Japanese leaders regarding North Korea's missiles; is South Korea and the U.S. coordinating a call as well?" he mentioned, "There has always been close communication between the South Korea-U.S. NSCs (National Security Councils) amid North Korea's successive provocations and even before that."

He added, "The South Korea-U.S. alliance is an alliance that acts, not just rhetoric," and "Military cooperation at the alliance level involving practical actions and South Korea-U.S.-Japan security cooperation will continue to be implemented alongside North Korea's escalating tensions."

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