Seoul: North Korea fired two medium-range ballistic missiles Sunday, Seoul´s military said, days after Pyongyang announced a successful test of a solid-fuel motor for a new weapons system.
Military tensions on the Korean peninsula have risen sharply this year as Pyongyang has carried out an unprecedented blitz of weapons tests, including the launch of its most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile ever last month.
South Korea´s Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected two medium-range ballistic missiles that had been fired from the Tongchang-ri area in North Pyongan province. The missiles were fired from 11:13 am (0213 GMT) to 12:05 pm into the East Sea, it said, referring to the body of water also known as the Sea of Japan.
They were fired on a “lofted” trajectory and flew around 500 kilometres (311 miles), JCS said in a statement, adding South Korean and US intelligence were analysing the launch “in consideration of recent trends related to North Korea´s missile development”.
Tongchang-ri is home to a major rocket launch site, where the North tested a “high-thrust solid-fuel motor” on Thursday, with state media describing it as an important test “for the development of another new-type strategic weapon system”.
The South´s military “strongly” condemned Sunday´s launch, calling it a “serious provocation” and a “clear violation” of UN Security Council resolutions. “Our military will maintain a firm readiness posture based on the ability to carry out an overwhelming response to any provocations by North Korea,” it added.
Despite heavy international sanctions over its weapons programmes, Pyongyang has built up an arsenal of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs). All its known ICBMs are liquid-fuelled, however, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has placed strategic priority on developing solid-fuel engines for more advanced missiles.
Liquid-fuel rockets are notoriously difficult to operate and take a long time to prepare for launch, making them slower and easier for the enemy to spot and destroy. The more mobile solid-fuel missiles have a much shorter prep time, and are harder to detect before launch.
A wishlist Kim revealed last year included solid-fuel ICBMs that could be launched from land or submarines. The latest motor test was a step towards that goal, but it is not clear how far North Korea has come in the development of such a missile, analysts said. The isolated country´s policy direction for next year will be laid out at a key party meeting later this month, and the official Korean Central News Agency earlier reported Kim saying that 2023 would be a “historic year”. In past years, Kim had delivered a speech every January 1, but he recently dropped the tradition in favour of making announcements at the year-end plenary meeting. —AFP
EU parliament clampdown a threat to relations: Qatari diplomat Doha: Qatar on Sunday condemned a corruption investigation by Belgium and the suspension of the Gulf state´s access to the EU parliament, saying it could “negatively” impact ties and natural gas supplies.
A statement issued by a Qatari diplomat singled out Belgian authorities for criticism and insisted that “inaccurate” information had been used. Eva Kaili, a Greek MEP, is one of four people charged after raids that uncovered at least 1.5 million euros ($1.6 million) in cash.
The money was suspected of being linked to a Gulf state, and the EU parliament last week called for Qatar´s access to the institution to be suspended. The scandal has erupted as many European countries look to Qatar for liquefied natural gas supplies. It has also been a link in contacts with Afghanistan and brought thousands of European nationals out of the country when the Taliban took power.
“The decision to impose such a discriminatory restriction that limits dialogue and cooperation on Qatar before the legal process has ended, will negatively affect regional and global security cooperation, as well as ongoing discussions around global energy poverty and security,” said the diplomat.
“We firmly reject the allegations associating our government with misconduct,” the statement added. “Qatar was not the only party named in the investigation, yet our country has been exclusively criticised and attacked.”
According to media reports, Moroccan interests also face scrutiny in the investigation. “We have observed this week´s selective condemnation of our country with great alarm,” the statement said.