South Korea says DPRK carries out new test of ballistic missiles

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
13 Oct 2022 23:20
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This marks the eighth missile test since DPRK amended its laws to allow preemptive strikes.

North Korea engages in new tests of Ballistic missiles: S. Korean def

The Yonhap news agency reported on Thursday, citing South Korea's armed forces, that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has again tested a ballistic missile today.

"North Korea launched a ballistic missile of an unidentified type in the direction of the Sea of Japan," the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

On Friday, the DPRK accused Seoul of engaging in "provocative action" by "inciting military tension" near their common borders, state media reported.

According to a statement from the Korean Central News Agency, citing a spokesman from the DPRK army, South Korea had on Thursday conducted "artillery fire for about 10 hours near the forward defense area of the KPA Fifth Corps."

The statement said that the KPA "took strong military countermeasures" in response to the "provocative action," adding that the KPA "sends a stern warning to the South Korean military inciting military tension in the frontline area with reckless action."

The DPRK has recently been carrying out a series of military drills under the simulation of an "actual war" due to Seoul, Tokyo, and Washington's ramping up of combined military exercises, including deploying a nuclear-powered US aircraft carrier to the area twice, infuriating Pyongyang, which sees such drills as rehearsals for an invasion.

Earlier today, DPRK state media confirmed its leader Kim Jong Un supervised the launch of two long-range cruise missiles, adding that the weapons were equipped to carry tactical nukes and had already been deployed to DPRK army units.

On Sunday, National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby said that the US is still ready for talks with North Korea over the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.

"We want to see the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, verifiable and complete, and we have communicated to the North Koreans," said Kirby.

"So what we have to do as we have that offer on the table is make sure that we have also the capabilities in the region and ready to go in case we need them," he added.