Kim Jong-un weapons test (data map)
Seoul, Korea:
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw the test-firing of a “new type of surface-to-sea missile” as part of new efforts to bolster maritime border security, state media reported on Thursday.
So far this year, Kim Jong Un has declared South Korea his country’s “main enemy,” abandoned institutions dedicated to reunification and outreach, and threatened war over territorial incursions of “even 0.001 mm.”
Pyongyang has also doubled down on weapons testing, including launching a series of cruise missiles, testing an “underwater nuclear weapons system” and launching solid-fuel hypersonic ballistic missiles.
Seoul’s military said on Wednesday it had detected North Korea launching multiple cruise missiles.
The official Korean Central News Agency said leader Kim Jong Un oversaw “an evaluation test launch of the new surface-to-sea missile Padasuri-6 equipped by the navy.”
KCNA added that Kim Jong Un was “very satisfied” with the results of the test.
The missile flew over the East China Sea and hit its intended target 1,400 seconds later.
Kim Jong Un said South Korea allowed “all kinds of warships to invade North Korean waters and seriously violate its sovereignty,” referring to North Korea’s official abbreviation.
The maritime border between the two countries, known as the Northern Limit Line, has never been officially drawn and has been the site of previous conflicts between the two Koreas.
Kim Jong Un denounced Seoul’s “desperate efforts to maintain the ‘Northern Limits'” and vowed that North Korea would “Defend maritime sovereignty thoroughly with force and actions rather than relying on any words“.
Earlier this year, Kim Jong Un said he would no longer recognize the northern boundary, calling the de facto border a “ghost border that has no basis under international law,” according to a report from the Korean Central News Agency on Thursday.
Earlier this week, North Korea announced it had tested a new control system for its multiple rocket launchers, which it said would play a “greater” role on the battlefield.
The launch of the cruise missiles sparked speculation among experts that North Korea was testing the weapons before shipping them to Moscow for use in Ukraine.
Pyongyang and Moscow have strengthened ties in recent months, with leader Kim Jong Un making a rare visit to Russia in September to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Seoul and Washington later accused North Korea of shipping weapons to Russia in violation of a series of U.N. sanctions against both countries.
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