North Korea Launched a Massive Ballistic Missile Capable of Traveling Between Continents, WH Condemns as ‘Security Threat’

North Korea’s earlier missile tests often missed the mark in being unable to travel to the United States. However, in testing a newer missile–one which launched 684 miles into the Japanese Economic Exclusion Zone–they may have found it, SK and Japan warn.

From the Daily Mail:

The test, reportedly [NK’s] largest ever, saw the launch of a new type of long-range missile, military officials in South Korea and Japan said – one capable of reaching the United States.

‘This launch is a brazen violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions and needlessly raises tensions and risks destabilizing the security situation in the region,’ Psaki noted.

‘This action demonstrates that the DPRK continues to prioritize its weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs over the well-being of its people.’

North Korea fired the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) toward the sea off its east coast on Thursday, militaries in South Korea and Japan said – its first long-range launch since 2017.

This test marks the first new long-range weapon test in North Korea in 5 years, since the agreement made between North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un and US President Donald Trump, and comes curiously in the midst of a security summit among western leaders to deal with the risk of an escalated war with Russia.

The missile, reportedly capable of carrying a nuclear payload to the  continental United States, is indeed a significant security threat.

Joe Biden called for Kim Jong-Un to “immediately cease” weapons tests, vowing support for South Korea and Japan. However, we’ve seen with Ukraine how far a “vow of support” gets you when war actually breaks out.

Additionally, while Biden noted diplomacy as “an option” he also states that North Korea must first immediately stop all hostile and threatening activity in the pacific.

5 years ago, the diplomatic efforts of President Trump persuaded North Korea and their dictator into a cessation of weapons tests and brazen development. Now with Biden in office, they begin again.