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NORTH KOREA HAS fired two medium-range ballistic missiles, Seoul’s military said, days after Pyongyang announced a successful test of a solid-fuel motor for a new weapons system.
Military tensions on the Korean peninsula have risen sharply this year as Pyongyang has carried out an unprecedented blitz of weapons tests, including the launch of its most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile ever last month.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected two medium-range ballistic missiles that had been fired from the Tongchang-ri area in North Pyongan province.
The missiles were fired from 11.13 am (2.13am Irish time) to 12.05pm into the East Sea, it said, referring to the body of water also known as the Sea of Japan.
They were fired on a “lofted” trajectory and flew around 500 kilometres, JCS said in a statement, adding South Korean and US intelligence were analysing the launch “in consideration of recent trends related to North Korea’s missile development”.
Tongchang-ri is home to a major rocket launch site, where the North tested a “high-thrust solid-fuel motor” on Thursday, with state media describing it as an important test “for the development of another new-type strategic weapon system”.
“Given that the missiles launched today are medium-range ballistic missiles, it is assessed to be test-firings of a new ballistic missile equipped with the solid-fuel engine tested on December 15,” said Cheong Seong-chang, a researcher at the Sejong Institute.
The South’s military “strongly” condemned the launch, calling it a “serious provocation” and a “clear violation” of UN Security Council resolutions.
“Our military will maintain a firm readiness posture based on the ability to carry out an overwhelming response to any provocations by North Korea,” it added.
Despite heavy international sanctions over its weapons programmes, Pyongyang has built up an arsenal of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).
All its known ICBMs are liquid-fuelled, however, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has placed strategic priority on developing solid-fuel engines for more advanced missiles.
Liquid-fuel rockets are notoriously difficult to operate and take a long time to prepare for launch, making them slower and easier for the enemy to spot and destroy.
The more mobile solid-fuel missiles have a much shorter prep time, and are harder to detect before launch.
A wishlist Kim revealed last year included solid-fuel ICBMs that could be launched from land or submarines.
The latest motor test was a step towards that goal, but it is not clear how far North Korea has come in the development of such a missile, analysts said.
The isolated country’s policy direction for next year will be laid out at a key party meeting later this month, and the official Korean Central News Agency earlier reported Kim saying that 2023 would be a “historic year”.
In past years, Kim had delivered a speech every 1 January, but he recently dropped the tradition in favour of making announcements at the year-end plenary meeting.
In his most recent address to the meeting, which was released to the public last New Year’s Day, Kim focused on domestic affairs.
Experts say while Kim refrained from directly addressing the United States last year, he could change his tone this time around.
Kim said this year that he wants North Korea to have the world’s most powerful nuclear force, and declared his country an “irreversible” nuclear state.
The United States and South Korea have warned for months that the North is preparing to conduct its seventh nuclear test.
North Korea is under multiple UN Security Council sanctions over its nuclear and missile activity since 2006.
Please follow suit here. There are plenty of refillable options.
@Jimmy Wallace: Don’t forget about the Tribunal at the end!
@Jimmy Wallace: … you forgot the Oversight Committee.
@Conrad Stapletwin: hahahah
@Jimmy Wallace: Is it time for your medication or mine?
@Malachy Cox: at which point lessons will be learned!
@Jimmy Wallace: you forgot to mention holding a referendum to complete the process…
@Jimmy Wallace: don’t forget about the Oireachtas committee
@damien leen: you beat me to it!! Lessons will be learned!!
As an ex-smoker and current refillable vaper, I’d support this ban. Disposables are a false economy and awful for the environment. And while the UK is already fairly awash with Chinese counterfeit products (which may get worse), I don’t think that’s an argument to not do this. Don’t let Perfection be the enemy of the Good, and all that.
Excellent News!
@Sean O’Dhubhghaill: Delighted for you.
Yes from me.
My youngest girl works Saturdays , few extra €, in a vape shop….she tells me it’s very busy…./ I can’t see that source of income lasting much longer.
@Ken Mc Carthy: what’s wrong with refillable and reusable vapes, Ken?
@Soundy Sound: tbh, I’ve no idea how the yokes work……. so this ban is just on throwaway ones ( 100% agree) & then there’s other ones ( with batteries & little tubs of juice) that will still be available?? Thats a great idea…..local park is always awash with litter— them ‘proud mary’ things
@Ken Mc Carthy: apologies….” LOST mary”
@Ken Mc Carthy: yet without having a clue, you were against the proposal to ban them! Do you ever stop to think a little and inform yourself before forming an view? It seems not.
@Ken Mc Carthy: You were thinking of another kind of smoking,Ken. “Proud Mary keep on burnin’,and we’re rollin’ (rollin’), rollin’, yeah (rollin’), Rollin’ on the river (rollin’ on the river)”
@Ken Mc Carthy: they all require batteries. The Lost Mary ones are also disposable.
@Soundy Sound: haha…… you’re soo like Mrs Mc Carthy……you’d look for an argument in an empty church!!!!! LOl
@Ken Mc Carthy: so because U don’t have a clue… actually nevermind I have to tend to my migraine you have brought on.
As Henry McKean said on Newstalk during the week,instead of all these watermelon and cherry flavoured vapes,you’d think they’d come up with a nice bbq flavour to replicate the lovely smoky sensation of the real stuff. Mmmm,Bbq Beef Hula Hoop,or spicy chorizo,anchovies on toast. That’d be more like it
@Larry Betts: ah stop please Larry! That’d make me want to start vaping!
Oh no..we will of course follow their lead as we always do.
I had to stop using disposables after Christmas. It’s a lot of waste and terrible for the environment. There’s loads of refillable alternatives though. OXVA is €35 euro, gives a similar experience to Lost Mary and Elfbar. You can even get those flavours too. It’s a lot cheaper as well.
@Gerald Obrien: I love Snaggle Grollop, the flavor is intense
@Gerald Obrien: you can get refillable elf bars. That’s what I use. They look the same but they are rechargeable, you just change the pod. A lot cheaper too.
Sorry for going off topic here,this is the first article down with comments open,the article further down on public sector pay deal and the we want to hear your thoughts,and the comment section closed,Jesus wept,how,if you want to hear people’s thoughts on the deal open the comment section FFS.
@Deano: How about you starting a discussion forum yourself?
@Gerben: looks like I just did,just as a matter of interest,does it make sense to you to post an article look for people’s thoughts on the subject of the article but close the comment section.
@Deano: They’re not looking for comments or people’s thoughts on the subject, they want it from the horse’s mouth, the ones directly affected. That’s why they put the big blue button at the bottom saying “Tap here to email us.”
If it’s good enough for Britain, then it’s good enough for Ireland
The government are looking into it.
Comments closed on immigration what’s the point have irish people comment on what effects our country too controversial journal no comment this a farce
@Chris Whelan: probably because everyone who wants to comment on those articles just posts total gibberish and most of them have appalling levels of grammar.
As you have succinctly proven.
100% we should follow this and soon. So many kids 10,11,12 year olds vaping constantly in school at home out with their friends. Sad, as nobody really knows what damage its doing to their health
I use a refillable vape when I’m not smoking cigarettes. Changing the coil and refilling can be a bit fiddly and messy and still produces waste. I know plenty of people who would have bought cigarettes for a night out and now get a disposable vape instead from the convenience store. I think they’re great for that purpose. Not good for the environment though but would you rather people smoke cigs?
@Radical Centrist: Convenience store? Where do you think you are?
@Tezmond McVicar: ha! Edit: Shop
@Jimmy Wallace: centra?
@Radical Centrist: don’t smoke if you only need them for a night out. Long term use refillable for giving up. They are not a cheaper replacement for cigarettes, they cause damage too
@Clare Maurer: it’s very easy to tell people not to smoke, especially drunk people! Vaping by far the lesser of two evils.
They should ban cigarettes and vapes and bring back the pipe for serious smokers. Mind you that will change when some influencer wxxker is filmed smoking a pipe.
Great Decision from the British Government I’m expecting to see no vapes in the hands where young can get them very soon
Like the days of alco pops very similar story lines to those whom moan about alco pop flavours now they have vapes to moan on about.
Social media is far worse than all those things.
Single use, not disposable.
Just do it then!!
If he would ‘like to see it’, then just get on with it!
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