This content was originally published by Radio Free Asia, and it is now being reprinted with permission.
North Korea fired a suspected mid-range nuclear weapon over the water off its east coast on Monday, said South Korea’s defense, two days before U. S. President-elect Donald Trump takes company.
In the midst of months of political unrest in the country, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was speaking with the operating leader in the North Korean capital at the time.
The South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, or JCS, said the military had detected the launch, which originated in the Pyongyang area at around noon, and it flew around 1, 100 kilometers ( 684 miles ) before landing in the sea less than 10 minutes later.
The JCS described the launch as a” distinct incitement,” stated that it was monitoring the situation, and that it had communicated important information to the US and Japan.
The release was confirmed by Japan’s Ministry of Defense, who claimed the missile may have already been tossed into the water.
Addressing North Korea’s growth of missiles and nuclear weapons in contravention of U. N. proposals, and its animosity towards the United States and its allies including South Korea, is a major concern for all U. S. services.
Blinken, in his discussions in Seoul with Acting President Choi Sang-mok, stressed an “unwavering” U. S. security devotion to South Korea and said their empire remained “more necessary than ever”.
Trump, who will take office on January 20, spearheaded an extraordinary political campaign against North Korea during his first year in office, meeting with leader Kim Jong Un three days but failing to advance in his efforts to renounce his nuclear and missile applications.
Trump raised his relationship with North Korea during his election plan, and in a signal that he might want to revive the initiative, he has chosen an advisor who was a part of the planning for the summits with Kim.
William Beau Harrison will be an assistant to the president and deputy chief of staff for businesses, the Trump change group said Saturday, noting Harrison’s” important” role in planning the discussions with Kim.
Mr. Harrison was tasked with the cooperation and execution of all political travel, including dozens of complex foreign visits during President Trump’s initial term, according to the team.
He has led and participated in numerous U.S. delegations traveling to countries like North Korea, Iraq, and Afghanistan, and he also played a significant role in planning each of Kim Jong Un’s ancient summits, the group added. DPRK, or the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, is the North’s established brand.
More conversations?
Trump first met Kim in Singapore in June 2018, then met him in Hanoi in February 2019, and finally met him at the Demilitarized Area between North and South Korea in June, marking his first official U.S. presidential visit to North Korea.
Kim and Trump both sought to entice North Korea into a nuclear weapons deal, but the efforts failed to lead to a profound denuclearization or positive relationships.
Next month, Trump named a former adviser to Germany, Richard Grenell, as his political minister for special operations that he said covered” some of the hottest areas” around the world, including North Korea.
Trump has also appointed Alex Wong as his primary deputy national security adviser, who was in talks with Pyongyang at the working-level during his first word.
Trump defended his marriage with North Korea during the campaign, claiming that getting along with her was a” great thing” and that if he were to return to the White House, North Korea would not be “acting up.”
RobertO’Brien, a former Trump director, claimed that if Trump were to win, North Korea may continue negotiations with him. He also questioned Kim’s willingness to denuclearize.
But Kim had appeared to act out the possibility of improving relationships with the U. S. under receiving Trump,  , saying , agreements with the U. S. in the past had merely confirmed its unwavering animosity.
Kim said that the only way to achieve the “most effective military capabilities” was given the U.S. policy toward North Korea, no Trump, as reported by North Korean state media in November.
