North Korea ‘has Guam in mind’ as missile achieves target distance
NORTH KOREA has again defied the global community with the launch of a ballistic missile which flew over Japan and travelled the furthest Pyongyang has ever fired a projectile, in what has been interpreted as a message that the regime “has Guam in mind”.
The launch of the intermediaterange missile yesterday will also be seen as a direct challenge to Donald Trump, who warned North Korea last month that it would face “fire and fury” if it threatened the US.
The missile, launched from Sunan, the site of Pyongyang’s international airport, flew about 2,300 miles – the greatest distance travelled by a North Korean missile.
The distance is slightly greater than between the North Korean capital and the US territory of Guam, prompting Itsunori Onodera, the Japanese defence minister, to say that he believed North Korea “has Guam in mind”.
Garren Mulloy, a defence expert and associate professor of international relations at Japan’s Daito Bunka University, told The Daily Telegraph: “From previous launches and the altitude and ranges of those missiles, it has been assumed that Guam is within range of the North’s missiles, but this latest test is proof.”
Sirens sounded in Japan as residents were warned to take shelter while the missile passed over Hoakkaido.
“We can never tolerate that North Korea trampled on the international community’s strong, united resolve toward peace that has been shown in UN resolutions and went ahead again with this outrageous act,” said Shinzo Abe, the Japanese prime minister. The UN Security Council “strongly condemned” North Korea’s “outrageous actions” and demanded its leaders “immediately cease all such actions”.
A statement, released yesterday, did not threaten further sanctions but stressed that all countries must “fully, comprehensively and immediately” implement all existing UN sanctions.
Donald Trump, meanwhile, warned that advanced US weaponry could make the souls of America’s enemies “crumble”. He said: “After seeing our capabilities, I am more confident than ever that our options are not only effective but overwhelming,” adding: “We will defend our nation and our civilisation against all who threaten our way of life. This includes North Korea.”
Kim Jong-un vowed to complete North Korea’s nuclear force, saying the final goal of his country’s weapons development is “equilibrium of real force” with the United States, state media reported this morning.
The North Korean leader said yesterday’s test of a Hwasong-12 intermediate-range ballistic missile had been successful and had increased his “combat power of nuclear force”.
China said it “opposed” the test, but call for all sides to exercise restraint.
Vladimir Putin and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron agreed in a phone call yesterday that resuming talks with North Korea was the only way to resolve tensions, the Kremlin said.
Choe Kang-il, deputy director general for North American affairs at North Korea’s foreign ministry, said: “You can impose whatever sanctions you want, but no matter how long these sanctions last – whether it is for a hundred or a thousand years – we will… continue with our planned tests.”