North Korea fires fourth ballistic launch and takes advantage of international disunity
South Koreans walk past a screen showing new gunfire from Pyongyang in Seoul on September 28.
© Ahn Young-joon/AP
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
North Korea has carried out its fourth ballistic launch in a week.
On Saturday, October 1, Pyongyang fired two short-range missiles into the open sea, continuing its weapons test record.
The Pyongyang regime is taking advantage of the tensions between the West on one side and Russia and China on the other, accentuated by the war in Ukraine.
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North Korea fired what appear to be ballistic missiles on Saturday, the Japanese Coast Guard said, citing the Defense Ministry.
At least two projectiles were fired from North Korea, the coast guard said.
According to state broadcaster NHK, referring to "
multiple sources within the government
", the projectiles appear to have ended their course outside of Japan's exclusive economic zone.
"
What appears to be a ballistic missile was launched from North Korea
," the coast guard said in a statement released at 06:47 (21:47 UT).
In a second statement issued at 07:01, they announced that another ballistic missile had obviously been fired.
Take advantage of international divisions
North Korea has conducted
a record number of weapons tests
this year, including ballistic missiles.
If confirmed, it would be the fourth such launch in a week.
Pyongyang fired two short-range ballistic missiles on Thursday, according to the South Korean military, hours after
US Vice President Kamala Harris left South Korea
.
During her visit, she traveled to the heavily militarized border with North Korea, on a trip to bolster defense commitments between Washington and Seoul.
According to Antoine Bondaz, director of the Korea program at the Foundation for Strategic Research and teacher at Sciences Po Paris, Pyongyang wants to take advantage
of "the disunity of the international community
", particularly in
the context of the war in Ukraine
.
North Korea's objective is to develop its capabilities, while primarily benefiting from a form of trivialization, since there is not always a reaction from the international community to its tests even though it it is a matter of violating the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council, and above all North Korea is seeking to benefit from the disunity of the international community and in particular from the fact that today the three Western countries of the Security Council ( the United States, the United Kingdom and France) fail to agree with Russia and China to collectively and together condemn these North Korean ballistic tests.
For the first time, for example, in May 2022, the permanent members of the Security Council did not agree to condemn the tests of a missile,
According to Antoine Bondaz, director of the Korea program at the Foundation for Strategic Research and teacher at Sciences Po Paris, Pyongyang wants to take advantage of “the disunity of the international community”
Guilhem Delteil
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North Korea
Kim Jong Un
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