North Korea launch tests new leader

NORTH Korea fired a ballistic missile before Tuesday’s inauguration of new South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol, who has vowed to take a hard line against the North.

South Korean officials said a North Korean submarine fired the missile into the sea yesterday.

Japan fears the country, run by dictator Kim Jongun, may be ready to stage nuclear tests within weeks – a claim backed up by American intelligence.

Japan’s defence minister Nobuo Kishi said yesterday’s launch was “absolutely unacceptable” and added that his country would “strengthen defence capabilities drastically”.