North Korea tested a rocket launcher capable of carrying nuclear warheads, state media reported on Sunday, a day after neighbor and rival South Korea detected the secretive country launching about 10 ballistic missiles.ALSO READ | North Korea fires about 10 ballistic missiles into Sea of Japan amid tense military drillsAccording to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un Oversaw the testing of the Multiple Rocket Launcher System (MRLS) on Saturday. He described the MRLS as “a very lethal but attractive weapon”.
The exercise involved more than a dozen 600mm-caliber ultra-precision multiple rocket launchers and two artillery batteries.KCNA quoted Kim as saying that the exercise gave Pyongyang’s enemies – with a strike range of 420 kilometers (about 260 miles) – a sense of “unease” and “a deep understanding of the destructive power of tactical nuclear weapons.”The rocket hit an island target in the East China Sea of North Korea more than 360 kilometers away.Daughter and potential successor accompany KimPhotos released by state media showed several rockets taking off from large vehicles. Another photo showed Kim Jong Un and his daughter Ju Ae watching the launch from a distance with an army officer.Zhu Ai has long been viewed as a possible successor, a view reinforced by a series of recent high-profile appearances.South Korea condemns launchSeoul condemned the launch as a “provocation in violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions” and urged Pyongyang to immediately stop such actions.The official launch comes just hours after South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok said that U.S. President Donald Trump thought it would be “good” to meet with Kim Jong-un.The Trump administration has been pushing in recent months to resume high-level talks with Pyongyang, with the goal of holding a possible summit with Kim this year — possibly during Trump’s scheduled visit to Beijing in late March.After largely ignoring the overtures, Kim Jong Un recently said the two countries could “live in harmony” if Washington accepted Pyongyang’s nuclear status.South Korea and the United States joint military exercises The test comes after the start of spring military exercises between South Korea and the United States, which are scheduled to last until March 19.The exercise is called “Freedom Shield” and involves about 18,000 South Korean soldiers.Earlier this week, Kim Jong Un’s sister and a powerful confidante, Kim Yo Jong, warned that the drills “could have unimaginably dire consequences.”She also pointed out that the exercises were conducted at a “critical moment when global security structures are rapidly collapsing and wars are breaking out in different parts of the world.”Pyongyang also condemned US and Israeli attacks on Iran as “illegal acts of aggression”, calling them evidence of “rogue” US behavior.(Using AFP input)
