DPRK tests Hwasong-17 ICBM, Kim pledges more countermeasures

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
17 Mar 08:24

The missile took about 67 minutes to reach its target in the Sea of Japan, as per local media.

DPRK leader Kim Jong Un speaks during the 8th Congress of the Workers' Party in Pyongyang, North Korea. (Reuters)

DPRK test-fired its Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on Thursday, the Voice of Korea radio station; reported, as the US and South Korea are conducting their largest joint military exercise in 5 years spanning over ten days.

"A most unstable situation is being created on the Korean Peninsula due to provocative and aggressive large-scale military exercises, conducted by the United States and their South Korean puppets, and aimed against DPRK," the report added.

"Amid those serious circumstances, a decision has been made <…> to hold a test launch of a Hwasong-17 ICBM on March 16," it stressed.

The missile was launched from Pyongyang. It traveled 1,000 meters and reached a maximum altitude of 6,045 kilometers. The missile took about 67 minutes to reach its target in the Sea of Japan.

"The test launch had no negative effect on the security of neighboring countries. It confirmed full combat readiness of North Korea’s strategic armed forces," the state radio said.

The launch was overseen by DPRK leader Kim Jong Un. His daughter accompanied him.

It is worth noting that North Korea conducted its eighth missile test since the beginning of the year on March 16. It occurred in the run-up to South Korea's first visit to Japan in 12 years.

Following the launch of a Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile, DPRK leader Kim Jong Un pledged that Pyongyang will continue to take measures against military provocations of the United States and South Korea, whose governments remain "openly hostile" to DPRK.

He threatened Washington and Seoul with "countermeasures" if their "military provocations" against the DPRK continued, North Korea’s state-run Voice of Korea radio quoted him as saying.

Elsewhere in his remarks, he vowed to "respond to nuclear weapons with nuclear weapons, and to open confrontation - with open confrontation."

He urged the country's strategic forces to be prepared "for military confrontations and every type of warfare" in this respect. Simultaneously, Kim emphasized Pyongyang's ultimate goal of deterring war and ensuring peaceful life.

In a related context, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno announced on Friday that its government has sanctioned three DPRK officials involved in the development of nuclear and missile programs of DPRK in response to Pyongyang's launch of a Hwansong-17 ballistic missile on Thursday.

"These provocative actions, taken with unprecedented frequency, constitute a serious and imminent threat and are totally unacceptable," Matsuno told a briefing.

The new sanctions list includes Jon Il Ho, the deputy head of the Munitions Industry Department, Kim Su Gil, the former director of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People's Army, and Yu Jin, a former head of the Munitions Industry Department, as per a Japanese Foreign Ministry statement.

The severe measures include a ban on any transactions with the three DPRK officials and the freezing of all their assets in Japan if they are discovered, as per the statement.