SEOUL – North Korea launched two cruise missiles early Wednesday in its first weapons test in more than two months as South Korea and the United States prepare for joint military exercises that have been cut or canceled. abandoned in recent years.
According to South Korea’s Defense Ministry, two missiles were fired off the west coast of North Korea. It was the North’s first test since June 5.
It also comes two days after President Yoon Suk-yeol of South Korea, like his predecessors, offered economic incentives if North Korea took steps to eliminate its nuclear arsenal. me. North Korea has not officially responded to Mr. Yoon and it is unclear if the launch had anything to do with his offer, which he revealed in a speech on Monday.
Since taking office in May, Mr. Yoon has vowed to strengthen military ties with the United States to counter the North’s nuclear threat, restoring and expanding suspended military exercises. as part of former President Donald Trump’s failed final outreach to the North. North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un.
Preliminary drills began this week for the first major exercise under Mr. Yoon and President Biden, an 11-day exercise that will begin on Monday.
North Korea has condemned past drills as a rehearsal for invasion and often counterattacks the public with military exercises of its own or weapon testing. South Korean and American officials have warned for weeks that North Korea is ready to restart nuclear tests at an underground test site in the northeastern corner of the country.
The Ulchi Freedom Shield, as the US-South Korea exercise is called, after an exercise of the United States, Korea and Japan. In their first exercise since 2017, they conducted a joint missile warning and ballistic missile search and track exercise off Hawaii last week, part of an effort to deal with the threat. growing threat from North Korea.
During the South Korean presidential election campaign in March, Yoon harshly criticized his predecessor Moon Jae-in’s policy of promoting dialogue with North Korea, calling it appeasement and failure. But since taking office, Yoon has also hung up on economic incentives for North Korea to denuclearize.
“Bold initiative that I envision will dramatically improve North Korea’s economy and people’s livelihood in stages if North Korea stops developing its nuclear program and embarks on a process of denuclearization. real and substantive denuclearization,” Yoon said Monday in a speech. celebrates National Liberation Day, a day observed in both Koreas to mark the end of Japanese rule in 1945.
Mr. Yoon said his plans would include support for power generation, modernization of ports and airports in North Korea, as well as programs to improve agricultural productivity.
“We are not insisting that North Korea should completely denuclearize before we do anything,” Yoon said at a news conference on Wednesday. “If North Korea shows a firm will to denuclearize, we will do what we can.”
Yoon’s aides say early-stage support could include a “food-resources exchange program,” in which South Korea would transport food in exchange for coal and other North Korean minerals. Tien.
The kind of economic help Yoon envisioned for North Korea would only be possible when the United Nations lifts sanctions on North Korea. Mr. Yoon’s office said it had consulted with the Biden administration, including on the possibility of easing sanctions, while working on his North Korea initiative.
Several rounds of talks between Washington and Pyongyang have broken down while sorting out details such as what actions North Korea should take to demonstrate its willingness to negotiate the removal of its nuclear arsenal and when. the United Nations should lift the sanctions.
Since his diplomatic ties with Mr Trump collapsed, Mr Kim has shown little interest in giving up his nuclear arsenal and has instead vowed to expand it.
“It is true that we desperately need an external environment conducive to economic building, but we can never sell the dignity we have so far protected as precious as our own lives. for a brilliant transformation,” he said in a Workers’ Party. meeting at the end of 2019.
