North Korea confirmed on Monday that it fired a Hwasong-12 intermediate-range ballistic missile at the weekend, the first time it had performed such a launch since 2017.
The Hwasong-12 missile was fired on Sunday to test its accuracy and effectiveness for use, North Korean state media KCNA reported. It said the missile was in the production phase.
According to experts, the Hwasong-12 has a range of 4,500 kilometres and could, theoretically, reach the US Pacific island of Guam, about 3,400 kilometres away, where the US has a military base.
Photographs from Sunday’s launch, released by KCNA, were reportedly taken from a camera mounted to the missile. Two images show the launch while others allegedly show the missile in mid-flight.
The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff on Sunday said that the missile flew about 800 kilometres towards the open sea and reached an altitude 2,000 kilometres during the test.
Pyongyang has been ratcheting up tensions with a series of missile launches since the start of 2022. It was the North Korean regime’s seventh show of force this year so far.
With Sunday’s test, North Korea appeared close to breaking its self-imposed moratorium on testing medium- and long-range missiles. South Korean President Moon Jae In accused Pyongyang of moving a step closer to fully breaking that moratorium.
Moon also accused North Korea of violating UN resolutions, which ban it from staging atomic tests and testing ballistic missiles. The US and Japan also condemned the test and expressed concern that the tests could destabilize the region.
However, North Korea is believed to also be working on missiles that would be able to reach the US mainland.
Pyongyang’s series of tests come as South Korea is preparing for presidential elections on March 9. Yoon Suk Yeol, of the opposition, conservative People Power Party, has promised that, if elected, he will install more missile defence systems, despite Chinese objections to such systems.
But the tests also run counter to China’s interests, which wants calm in the region in the lead-up to the Winter Olympics, set to start later this week. So far, China has not commented on the tests.
The test of a medium-range missile hints at increased ambitions for North Korea, which had, until now, tested shorter-range missiles, though it had also declared it had recently tested a hypersonic missile.
But experts note that the new tests aren’t a major change in the region’s weapons capacities, noting that Pyongyang had already tested similar missiles five years ago and noted that the test showed signs of a country still learning how to use the technology.
“Now, it’s a fact-of-life: we have missiles, they work, and we’ll occasionally test them to make sure they work – I think some of this is North Korea trying to get attention. It’s done that in the past; it’ll probably continue to do that,” wrote North Korea expert Ankit Panda on Twitter.
Analysts say North Korea is so keen on displaying its missile prowess, partially because of its self-avowed right to self-defence, but also to make sure it is seen as an equal partner at talks with other powers and also to consolidate power internally, by showing North Koreans the country is making advancements.
