The firings come three days after the launch of two ballistic missiles in the Sea of Japan. At the UN, several diplomats have asked China for its “assistance” on North Korea.
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Tension escalates. North Korea fired Saturday July 22 “several cruise missiles” in the Yellow Sea, between the Korean peninsula and China, announced the joint staff of South Korea. The missile fire took place around 4 a.m. local time (9 p.m. in Paris on Friday), according to the same source. These launches come three days after those of two ballistic missiles, this time in the Sea of Japan, on the opposite east coast.
“South Korean and American intelligence are analyzing the launches while watching for signs of additional activity”, the South Korean military added. Furthermore, at the UN, several ambassadors have asked China for its “assistance” on North Korea. Relations between the two Koreas are at an all-time low, with diplomacy stalled and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un calling for an accelerated arms race, including tactical nuclear weapons.
Radio silence on the Pyongyang side
The latest cruise missile launches come as a US soldier, Travis King, entered North Korea from the south on Tuesday and is possibly being held there by authorities, according to the US military. But Pyongyang remains silent on the fate of this soldier, who was serving a prison sentence in South Korea for assault. “The Pentagon attempted to contact the North Korean military to inquire about King’s situation, but did not get a response”State Department spokesman Matt Miller said Thursday.
On the same day, Pyongyang said a US nuclear submarine stopover in South Korea could “fall under the conditions of use” of its own atomic weapons. Seoul responded the next day to these threats by reaffirming that any such attack would trigger a response resulting in the “END” of Kim Jong Un’s regime.