North Korea launched two short-range ballistic missiles from the territory of the province of Pyeongchang-pukto towards the Sea of ​​Japan. This was reported by the South Korean agency "Ronhap" with reference to the Joint Committee of the Chiefs of Staff of the Republic of Korea.

Starts took place at 06:45 and 06:50 (00:45 and 00:50 Moscow time), presumably from the region of Songcheon County. The range of missiles was about 410 km, altitude - about 50 km.

“Intelligence officials from South Korea and the United States are exploring other details. Our military is monitoring the situation in case new launches are carried out and maintain a state of combat readiness, ”the agency quoted the South Korean command as saying.

In addition, the Joint Chiefs of Staff called the DPRK’s missile launch “extremely unacceptable” when the whole world is facing difficulties due to the coronavirus pandemic, and also called on the regime to immediately cease such military maneuvers.

Official Tokyo has already protested to the authorities of North Korea over missile launches, the NHK television channel reported. It is noted that the missiles did not reach the exclusive economic zone of Japan and did not lead to destruction.

On March 21, the North Korean news agency TsTAK distributed information about the artillery exercises held the day before. It is reported that Kim Jong-un personally led the competition in the accuracy of artillery fire of large units of the DPRK army.

The aim of the shooting was "a radical improvement of the entire form, content and methods of artillery exercises" for "consistent preparation for war."

“As soon as the order of the corps commanders“ Fire! ”Was given to the artillery firing positions, the guns opened up heavy fire and iron rain and steel hail fell from the sky onto the target island,” the TsTAK report said.

According to the expert on political development of the DPRK Institute of the Far East, Alexander Zhebin, missile launches were carried out, most likely, as part of artillery exercises.

“North Korea’s missile units are part of artillery troops,” the expert explained.

In early March, the North Korean military launched two missiles. As stated in the Joint Chiefs of Staff of South Korea then, the missile range was about 240 kilometers at an altitude of 35 kilometers.

For its part, the DPRK authorities said they had conducted exercises on March 2 using long-range artillery.

  • Kim Jong-un (right)
  • Reuters
  • © KCNA

On March 9, the DPRK conducted another missile test, firing at least three shells. As suggested in Seoul, the launches were made using an extra-large multiple launch rocket launcher.

Recall that in 2019, the DPRK authorities conducted a series of missile tests, having completed only 13 missile launches. In addition, last November in North Korea, tests were carried out on an ultra-large-caliber multipurpose rocket launcher. This was reported by the press organ of the DPRK Labor Party, the Nodon Sinmun newspaper.

Pyongyang's regular maneuvers have caused concern from the United Nations. In early January, an official spokesman for the UN Secretary-General Stefan Dujarric announced that Antoniu Guterres was concerned about the DPRK’s decision to end the moratorium on nuclear missile tests. At the same time, the UN Secretary General expressed the hope that the tests will not be resumed, since these actions are contrary to UN Security Council resolutions, and the nuclear non-proliferation regime remains the pillar of global nuclear security.

At the same time, in the United States so far they are limited to observing the DPRK missile launches. Commenting on the exercises held in North Korea on March 21, Colonel Lee Peters, spokesman for the US military command in South Korea, told TASS that the American side was following the situation and had close consultations with Tokyo and Seoul.

Experts doubt that the White House will take harsh measures due to the launch of short-range North Korean military missiles.

“For the United States, it’s more important that the DPRK has not yet tested intercontinental missiles. In exchange, the United States is ready to remain silent when short-range missiles are launched, ”said Alexander Zhebin.

A similar point of view is shared by Alexander Vorontsov, head of the department of Korea and Mongolia at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

“The latest missile launches by the DPRK are more worrying for the authorities in South Korea and Japan than for the United States. Washington and its regional allies have differences in this matter, ”the expert said in an interview with RT.

In addition, according to analysts, UN Security Council resolutions prohibiting North Korea from developing their own missiles are openly discriminatory, since no other state in the world has such restrictions.

“Therefore, the DPRK leadership from the very beginning stated that it did not intend to recognize and comply with these requirements,” Alexander Zhebin recalled.

Difficult dialogue

Recall that tensions between Pyongyang and Washington reached its peak when, in April 2017, U.S. President Donald Trump ordered the U.S. Navy carrier group to be sent to the Korean Peninsula. Then the situation in the region escalated to the limit, the world seriously started talking about the possibility of a new war on the Korean Peninsula.

And on January 1, 2018, the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un announced that in 2017 the creation of full-fledged nuclear forces in the republic was completed. Earlier, North Korean developers and scientists conducted a series of nuclear and missile tests.

Donald Trump emotionally reacted to the statement of the North Korean leader, saying that the American "nuclear button" is much more powerful than that of the DPRK.

"North Korean leader Kim Jong-un stated that" the nuclear button is always on his desk. " Can someone please, from his exhausted and starving regime, inform him that I also have a nuclear button, but it is much larger and more powerful than his, and my button works, ”wrote the head of the White House on Twitter.

Nevertheless, after a few months, relations between the United States and the DPRK began to soften, the leaders of both countries stopped exchanging mutual insults and attacks.

  • Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump
  • Reuters
  • © Jonathan Ernst

In June 2018, the first summit of Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un was held. The heads of state met in Singapore, following the meeting, a joint declaration was signed. According to the text of the document, the North Korean leadership reaffirmed its commitment to the idea of ​​nuclear disarmament. Pyongyang then promised to make efforts to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula, and Washington, for its part, promised to provide security guarantees to the DPRK.

However, in practice, the parties failed to implement these agreements, despite the fact that Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un later met twice more.

Before the Singapore summit, the DPRK authorities dismantled the test mines at the Phungeri nuclear test site. Pyongyang also destroyed ground observation posts, utility and office buildings serving the landfill. In addition, in July 2018, the DPRK began dismantling the Sohe nuclear test site, which was considered one of the key sites for launching North Korean intercontinental ballistic missiles and satellites.

  • Reuters

However, the dismantling was not completed, since the United States did not agree to make counter-concessions to the DPRK and lift at least part of the sanctions restrictions. It is worth noting that Moscow has repeatedly called on Washington to phase out mutual concessions. And in December 2019, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, following talks with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, said that it was impossible to demand “everything at once” from the DPRK so that only after complete disarmament of Pyongyang would it be possible to return to the issue of lifting sanctions.

But Washington not only did not agree to ease sanctions pressure, but also introduced new restrictions against North Korea over the past months.

So, in mid-January 2020, two North Korean companies suspected by the US authorities of supplying labor from the DPRK to foreign markets fell under restrictions.

Against this background, Pyongyang turned off the nuclear disarmament process, and the Sohe training ground continues to be used for missile launches. For example, in December 2019, the North Korean agency TsTAK announced a test at a training ground of a certain defense development, which, according to journalists, will help build the potential for nuclear containment of the DPRK. However, the test details were not specified.

Back in April 2019, Kim Jong-un announced that he was ready to wait for changes in the approach of the American side to the dialogue before the end of the year. But although in the summer of 2019, the head of the White House again met with the North Korean leader in the demilitarized zone in the border post of Panmunj, this did not help advance the implementation of mutual promises. The negotiations held between the US and DPRK delegations in October in Stockholm were not crowned with success either.

On January 1, 2020, Kim Jong-un announced that Pyongyang would continue to develop strategic weapons until the United States abandoned hostility towards the DPRK. Also, the North Korean leader promised to soon show a new strategic weapon.

Almost two weeks after this statement, Washington turned to Pyongyang with a proposal to return to negotiations at the level of diplomatic delegations of the two countries. This was stated by Assistant to the President of the United States Donald trump on national security Robert O'Brien, but did not give at least an indicative date for possible negotiations.

No breakthroughs foreseen

According to Alexander Zhebin, Donald Trump does not intend to refuse negotiations with the DPRK, but now the dialogue is complicated by the election campaign in the United States.

“It’s difficult for Trump to make any agreements with the DPRK now, so as not to be accused in the USA. I think that some contacts of the parties are supported, but no big concessions are expected before the US election. Pyongyang has every reason to fear that if Trump loses the election, his successor in the White House will simply be able to annul the previous agreements. Therefore, it makes no sense for North Korea to make concessions now, ”the expert believes.

  • North Korean soldier
  • Reuters
  • © Damir Sagolj

According to St. Petersburg State University Associate Professor Irina Lantsova, the fact that Trump could not fulfill his promise and resolve the conflict on the Korean Peninsula will not affect his election campaign, since the head of the White House will be able to explain his failures with the coronavirus pandemic.

“I think Trump will be helped in this regard by the coronavirus - its factor has grown very much in both the foreign and domestic policies of the country. Trump may well refer to him, explaining that because of the fight against the virus, there simply is no time left to resolve the Korean situation, ”Irina Lantsova said.

At the same time, Pyongyang does not intend to involve third countries and intermediaries in negotiations with Washington, the expert noted.

“Now the situation on the Korean peninsula is quite acute - neither peace nor war. Although the DPRK and South Korea did not start a direct military conflict, there are no serious shifts to peace either and are not expected in the near future, ”summed up Irina Lantsova.