N.Korea Tests Biggest Missile Since 2017, U.S. Calls For Talks

[Gunny]

More "talks" with N Korea for the same old crap :rolleyes: So Russia busts out is rusty army in Eastern Europe, big, badass N Korea is plinking in the ocean attention-whoring again, and Biden wants to get all kinds of talking crap going.

Meanwhile, China has a viable, hypersonic missile its been testing along with it various other "do as it pleases" policies and not one peep. Russia and N Korea, IMO, are NOT the primary threat to the US and/or rest of the Western World. Scratch that: rest of the World.


January 31, 2022
By Josh Smith
SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea confirmed on Monday it had launched a Hwasong-12 ballistic missile, the same weapon it had once threatened to target the U.S. territory of Guam with, sparking fears the nuclear-armed state could resume long-range testing.
The launch of the intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) was first reported by South Korean and Japanese authorities on Sunday. It was the seventh test conducted by North Korea this month and the first time a nuclear-capable missile of that size has been launched since 2017.
The United States is concerned North Korea’s escalating missile tests could be precursors to resumed tests of nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and vowed an unspecified response “designed to show our commitment to our allies,” a senior U.S. official told reporters in Washington.
“It’s not just what they did yesterday, it’s the fact that this is coming on the heels of quite a significant number of tests in this month,” the official said, while urging Pyongyang to join direct talks with no preconditions.
North Korea has said it is open to diplomacy, but that Washington’s overtures are undermined by its support for sanctions and joint military drills and arms buildups in South Korea and the region.
Amid a flurry of diplomacy in 2018, including summits with then-U.S. President Donald Trump, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un declared his nuclear force complete and said he would suspend nuclear testing and launches of the country’s longest-range missiles.
Kim said he was no longer bound by that moratorium after talks stalled in 2019, and North Korea suggested this month it could restart those testing activities because the United States had shown no sign of dropping its “hostile policies.”
It is unclear if IRBMs such as the Hwasong-12 were included in Kim’s moratorium, but none had been tested since 2017.
North Korea analysts said the tests appear aimed at securing global acceptance of its weapons programmes, whether through concessions or simply winning tired acquiescence from a distracted world.
“The world’s distraction on other issues actually seems to be working to North Korea’s benefit right now,” Markus Garlauskas, a senior fellow with the Atlantic Council think tank and former U.S. national intelligence officer for North Korea.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in said the recent flurry of North Korean missile tests was reminiscent of heightened tensions in 2017, when North Korea conducted multiple nuclear tests, launched its largest missiles, and drew threats of “fire and fury” from the United States.
South Korean Defence Minister Suh Wook visited his country’s Army Missile Command on Monday to check its readiness in the face of the North Korean launches, the ministry said in a statement.
“North Korea’s series of missile test-fires, including intermediate-range ballistic missiles, pose a direct and serious threat to us and a grave challenge to international peace and stability,” Suh said after being briefed. “We will maintain a full military readiness posture that can respond immediately to any situation.”
Japan’s Defence Minister Nobuo Kishi told reporters North Korea was escalating its provocation of the international community and said its “remarkable improvement” in missile technology “cannot be tolerated”.
BOOSTING MISSILE CAPABILITIES
Sunday’s test “confirmed the accuracy, safety, and operational effectiveness of the produced Hwasong-12 type weapon system,” North Korean state news agency KCNA reported.
State media coverage of the launch made no mention of the United States, and Kim was not reported to have attended. North Korean officials said this month the tests are for self defence and not targeted at any specific country.
Kim vowed ahead of the New Year to bolster North Korea’s military capabilities in the face of international uncertainties caused by “hostile policies” by the United States and its allies.
North Korea has previously said the Hwasong-12 can carry a “large-size heavy nuclear warhead,” and analysts estimate it has a range of 4,500 km (2,800 miles).
In August 2017, just hours after Trump told the North that any threat to the United States would be met with “fire and fury”, the commander of the North’s Strategic Forces said it was “seriously considering a plan of enveloping fire” involving a simultaneous launch of four Hwasong-12 missiles toward Guam.
That year North Korea flight-tested the Hwasong-12 at least six times, including flying it over the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido twice.
KCNA said Sunday’s missile launch was conducted in such a way as to ensure the safety of neighbouring countries, and that the test warhead was fitted with a camera that took photos while it was in space.
(Reporting by Josh Smith and Jack Kim; Additional reporting by David Brunnstrom in Washington and Satoshi Sugiyama in Tokyo; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
https://www.oann.com/north-korea-says-tested-hwasong-12-missile-took-pictures-from-space/

[Gunny]

January 31, 2022
By Josh Smith
SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea’s unusually active month of missile testing appears aimed at securing global acceptance of its sanctioned weapons programmes, analysts said, whether through concessions or simply winning tired acquiescence from a distracted world.
North Korea may feel safe taking advantage of the pandemic and Washington’s preoccupation with crises such as Russia and Ukraine to fulfil leader Kim Jong Un’s orders to advance its nuclear weapons and missile capabilities during his five-year plan, analysts said.
“The world’s distraction on other issues actually seems to be working to North Korea’s benefit right now,” Markus Garlauskas, a senior fellow with the Atlantic Council think tank and former U.S. national intelligence officer for North Korea.
On Sunday North Korea tested an intermediate-range ballistic missile for the first time since 2017, its seventh test in the past month. U.S. and South Korean officials say they fear the launch could be a step toward fully resuming tests of its longest-range missiles or nuclear weapons.
The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden says it is open to talks with North Korea without preconditions, but those overtures have been rebuffed and the White House has not made the standoff a major talking point.
After North Korea tested several “hypersonic missiles” in early January, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said they were “profoundly destabilising” and that “some of this is North Korea trying to get attention.”
Analysts say that although North Korea clearly has messages for Washington and other countries, it is unlikely that seeking attention is a major goal.
The idea that Kim Jong Un orders tests of missiles just to “get attention” is one of the most frustrating and stubbornly held misconceptions about North Korea today, Garlauskas said.
“The North Koreans are not spoiled children ‘acting out’ … nor are these missiles just for show as propaganda ploys,” he said. “These weapons programmes are very real, they are making meaningful strides much quicker than many give them credit for.”
North Korea is heavily sanctioned, including by U.N. Security Council resolutions, over its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programmes. Talks aimed at persuading Pyongyang to give up or limit its arsenal in return for sanctions relief have been stalled since 2019.
‘NORMALISING’ WEAPONS TESTS
Raising U.S. awareness of North Korea is one reason behind the tests, but may not be the main goal, said Rachel Minyoung Lee, a former open source analyst for the CIA who is now with the Washington-based Stimson Center.
Kim Jong Un only officially attended one of the seven tests – his first in more than a year – and state media coverage has focused more on technical achievements and less on political messages than in 2017, for example. Sunday’s Hwasong-12 test was not covered on the front page of the ruling party’s Rodong Sinmun newspaper, as it was in 2017.
Lee said North Korea appears to want to keep the emphasis on the economy while proceeding with its defence development plan, “normalise” weapons tests and not make too big a deal out of them, and modulate the tone of the media coverage.
“North Korea has emphasized time and again that it has a right to develop and test weapons like any other sovereign country,” she said. “And Pyongyang seems to have realized that in order for its weapons tests to not be perceived as being different from what other countries are doing, it itself needs to start treating its weapons tests like a normal part of state affairs, just like most other countries in the world.”
Analysts say North Korea has made its missiles more capable of evading missile defences, developed new systems that can be hidden or attack from a range of locations, and ensured that existing models are reliable and effective – improvements that all must be tested.
The tests also help project government power at a time when the country is grappling with economic troubles and are likely seen as a tool for encouraging national pride ahead of major holidays marking the 80th birthday of Kim Jong Un’s late father Kim Jong Il, on Feb. 16 and the 110th birthday of his late grandfather Kim Il Sung on April 15.
Even if Washington had the bandwidth to pay more attention to the North Korean nuclear issue, Pyongyang would likely continue to refuse direct talks because of the pandemic, keep perfecting its weapons technology, and maintain its high price tag for talks, said Duyeon Kim, with the U.S.-based Center for a New American Security.
“An automatic benefit (of the tests) is simultaneously building leverage ahead of any future diplomatic talks,” she said. “But they’ve made it pretty clear that they’re squarely inward focused right now… I don’t think it’s a cry for attention at all.”
(Reporting by Josh Smith. Editing by Gerry Doyle)
https://www.oann.com/analysis-with-seven-tests-in-a-month-n-korea-calls-for-world-to-accept-its-missiles/

[jimnyc]

I guess it's good that they all land in the water, but what are their true capabilities?

They claim this latest missile went 236 miles with an altitude of 26 miles, then dunked in the water. <--- that comes from South Korean joint chiefs...)

They likely have stolen intel and other info for building crap, and some of their own personnel & knowing them most likely some folks kidnapped from South Korea to help build. And yes, they have been proven to keep people or take them over the years. But the hard part would be getting materials. Can they obtain this from other countries? Or I should ask, will they sell them to NK?

Where is their true current status on abilities of such weapons?

[Gunny]

I guess it's good that they all land in the water, but what are their true capabilities?

They claim this latest missile went 236 miles with an altitude of 26 miles, then dunked in the water. <--- that comes from South Korean joint chiefs...)

They likely have stolen intel and other info for building crap, and some of their own personnel & knowing them most likely some folks kidnapped from South Korea to help build. And yes, they have been proven to keep people or take them over the years. But the hard part would be getting materials. Can they obtain this from other countries? Or I should ask, will they sell them to NK?

Where is their true current status on abilities of such weapons?N Korea shares land borders with both Russia and China. I doubt getting materials is all that difficult. More to your question: even if China/Russia would sell the materiel to N Korea, what is N Korea paying for it with?

N Korea's sole "value" is it provides a distraction from Beijing.

I doubt Un cares where they land. They can reach in-theater targets we have sworn to protect. Under normal circumstances, we're automatically pulled it. Given Biden's attitude regarding Putin breaking himself off a chunk of Ukraine without fear of military reprisal, I'd say any response from the US would be FUBAR to begin with.