After North Korea tested eight rockets on Saturday, South Korea and the US fired a barrage of missiles as a show of force to Kim Jong Un.
In a bombardment that lasted 10 minutes and began around 4.45 a.m. local time Sunday, Seoul said one US missile and seven Korean missiles were launched into the East Sea from an unnamed facility in the country’s northeast.
The rehearsal, which came just hours after North Korea tested eight of its own short-range missiles in one of its largest launches in recent months, was aimed to show the partners are ready to respond rapidly to ‘crisis events,’ according to American commanders.
Kim Jong Un, North Korea’s dictator, is launching a series of attention-getting military tests, which the US and South Korea fear will culminate in the country’s first nuclear test since 2017.
The tyrant is believed to be trying to increase pressure in order to relaunch negotiations over his nuclear stockpile from a position of strength, in the hopes of receiving sanctions relief and security assurances in exchange for pledges to give up his nuclear weapons.
Such talks had started under President Donald Trump, but they faded out after the two failed to reach an agreement during a summit in Hanoi in 2019, just before Trump lost the election to Joe Biden the following year.
During their test, the United States and South Korea fired Army Tactical Missile Systems from M270 rocket launchers.
The missiles have a range of up to 200 miles and are meant to strike high-value targets deep into enemy territory with pinpoint accuracy.
‘Our military strongly condemns the North’s series of ballistic missile provocations and sternly urges it to immediately stop acts that raise military tensions on the peninsula,’ the US Joint Chiefs of Staff added.
Monday’s launches are the second such joint show of force by the allies under South Korea’s hawkish new President Yoon Suk-yeol, who has vowed a tougher stance against Pyongyang.
‘Our government will respond decisively and sternly to any provocations from North Korea,’ Yoon said Monday during a speech on Memorial Day.
Pyongyang fired three ballistic missiles, including a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile, in their first joint move since 2017. Last month, Seoul and Washington carried out joint launches after Pyongyang fired three ballistic missiles, including a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile.
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