‘Slander’ claim as Korean rivals clash on missile tests

THE influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un accused the South Korean leader of “slander” yesterday after the rival nations carried out missile tests within hours of each other, the hermit state’s media said.

Moon Jae-in, the South Korean president, described the North’s actions as “provocations”, prompting Kim Yo-jong, a key adviser to her brother, to condemn Seoul’s “illogical attitude that describes their similar behaviour as a legitimate action to support peace, and ours as a threat to peace”.

It came after Pyongyang had fired “two unidentified ballistic missiles” from its central inland area into the sea off its east coast, Seoul’s military said. It was the nuclear-armed nation’s second missile test in less than a week and a clear signal to Beijing, analysts said.

South Korea said it had conducted its first underwater-launched ballistic missile test, after Pyongyang’s, when a domestically built missile fired from a submarine hit its target.

A US State Department spokesman said: “This launch is in violation of multiple UN Security Council Resolutions and poses a threat to the DPRK’S neighbours and other members of the international community.

“We remain committed to a diplomatic approach to the DPRK (Democratic Republic of Korea) and call on them to engage in dialogue.”

Wang Yi, the Chinese government’s foreign minister, said: “We all have to work together towards the resumption of dialogue.”