Kim oversees ballistic missile launch with daughter in tow

It is first official confirmation of supremo’s daughter, experts say

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw a test of Pyongyang’s newest intercontinental ballistic missile with his daughter in tow for the first time, state media reported yesterday.

Declaring he would meet perceived US nuclear threats with nukes of his own, Kim supervised the launch on Friday of the blackand-white missile, which the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said was the Hwasong-17 — dubbed the “monster missile” by analysts.

The launch was successful, KCNA said, adding that the “test-fire clearly proved the reliability of the new major strategic weapon system”. KCNA said Kim attended the launch “together with his beloved daughter and wife”, and state media images showed a beaming Kim accompanied by a young girl in a puffer jacket and red shoes as he walked in front of the missile. North Korean state media has never mentioned Kim’s children, and this was the first official confirmation that he had a daughter, experts said.

Since Kim declared North Korea an “irreversible” nuclear state in September, the United States has ramped up regional security cooperation. The UN Security Council yesterday said it would discuss North Korea in meeting tomorrow.

North Korea has conducted a record-breaking blitz of launches in recent weeks, which Pyongyang — and Moscow — have repeatedly blamed on Washington’s moves to boost the protection it offers to allies Seoul and Tokyo.