Failed launch in Pyongyang missile test

South Korean military: "Ready for any eventuality." Uncertainty over type of technology used. The new vice president of the North Korean Workers' Party arrives in China for a visit, "official but not announced".

 

Seoul (AsiaNews) -  Early this morning the North Korea Army tested a missile from the eastern coast of the country, but the launch failed. In any case, the South has raised the military alert level and is "ready for any eventuality”, according to Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.  A statement released after the test reads: "North Korea attempted to launch an unidentified missile from the region near Wonsan at around 5:20 a.m., but it is presumed to have been unsuccessful. "

The South’s intelligence is unable to say what device was tested, but this morning’s flop comes after three tests - all failures - of "Musudan" missiles in April. According to United Nations sanctions, the Pyongyang regime is not authorized to use any missile technology, but after the fourth nuclear test in January 2016, the tension between the North and the international community has spiked.

Different AsiaNews sources on the peninsula emphasize that these events "make the news more in the West than in South Korea. If we were to hide every time tensions spike on the 38th parallel we would not have a normal life." In fact, the news of the failed launch made headlines in Western newspapers but is relegated to normal news in Korean press.

Much more attention is devoted instead to the arrival of new vice chairman of the North Korean Workers' Party, Ri Su-yong, in China. The South’s media believe that the journey is "official, though not announced." Ri became vice president of the only Northern Party during the recent Congress, the first in 36 years, and is considered a close ally of the dictator Kim Jong-un.

For decades China has been North Korea’s closest economic and military ally, but after the death of former leader Kim Jong-il and the rise to power of his son Jong-un relations have cooled greatly. In March 2016, Beijing voted in favor of introducing new harsh sanctions against Pyongyang, in response to several military provocations.

• North
• Korea south China launching missile test technology army of
• re-yong masudan