AMN/ WEB DESK
North Korea has claimed the missile it launched, yesterday, is able to carry a payload of 2.5 tons which would make it capable of carrying a nuclear warhead, in its first statement since the test. It was the country’s first ballistic launch in almost a year and the first since Joe Biden became the US President. Mr Biden has said, the US will respond accordingly. The US, Japan and South Korea have condemned the tests. Under UN Security Council resolutions, Pyongyang is banned from testing ballistic missiles.
According to the North Korean release, the senior leader Ri Pyong Chol North Korea’s, who oversaw the test, said today, the development of this weapon system is of great significance in bolstering up the military power of the country and deterring all sorts of military threats. He added, the two weapons struck a test target 600km off North Korea’s east coast, disputing Japanese assessments that they flew just over 400km.
South Korea’s spy agency has said that North Korea had timed the missile launch ahead of President Biden’s press conference. It also claimed that Pyongyang was protesting against the extradition of its citizen, Mun Chol Myong from Malaysia to the US, and the recent UN Human Rights Council resolution against North Korea.