North Korea fires three missiles after Biden ends Asia trip
Alastair Gale
May 26, 2022 (Gmt+09:00)
South Korea said it detected signs of the latest North Korean launches in advance and test-fired surface-to-surface missiles with the U.S. military in a move to show their readiness.
Japan’s defense minister, Nobuo Kishi, said after Wednesday’s launches that North Korea’s missile tests ”pose a threat to the peace and security of Japan, the region and the international community, and are absolutely unacceptable.”
U.S. Indo-Pacific Command in Hawaii said in a brief statement that the missiles didn’t pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel or territory, or to U.S. allies, but highlighted the destabilizing impact of the North’s weapons program.
While in Seoul over the weekend, Mr. Biden agreed with new South Korea President to begin planning the resumption of joint military field exercises with South Korea and pledged that the U.S. would be prepared to send nuclear-capable military assets such as bombers to Korea if Seoul faced a crisis with the North.
In Tokyo, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told Mr. Biden that Japan is committed to increasing military spending and developing capabilities to hit back at enemy missile bases that threaten Japan.
The U.S., South Korea and Japan have all sought talks with North Korea and say they would be willing to provide Pyongyang with aid to help it cope with the Covid outbreak. North Korea hasn’t responded to any of the outreach.
Pyongyang has been gradually expanding its military arsenal since talks on denuclearization broke down in 2019 following an unsuccessful summit in Hanoi between Mr. Kim and then-U.S. President Donald Trump.
Chieko Tsuneoka and Dasl Yoon contributed to this article.
Write to Alastair Gale at alastair.gale@wsj.com
May 10, 2024 (Gmt+09:00)
Apr 15, 2024 (Gmt+09:00)
Mar 20, 2024 (Gmt+09:00)
Feb 27, 2024 (Gmt+09:00)
Feb 07, 2024 (Gmt+09:00)