NKorea Resumes Missile Launches as US, SKorea Strengthen Ties
The Facts
North Korea reportedly fired off an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on Monday into the waters off Japan, near the island of Hokkaido, marking its second missile launch over the past two days.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff estimates that it traveled some 1K km (621 miles) before crashing into the East Sea, with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida saying, based on the flight trajectory, that the launch appeared to be an ICBM with an estimated 14K km (9.3K miles) range.
The Spin
Pro-North Korea narrative
Though Washington and its proxies in the Korean Peninsula have carried out threatening military exercises on North Korea's doorstep in alleged efforts to deter Pyongyang, they are quick to claim that any measures to develop any sort of defense weaponry from the North are a provocation. Pyongyang will continue its sovereign right to self-defense and will not be bullied by warmongering enemies.
Anti-North Korea Narrative
North Korea continues to stoke global tensions and work towards igniting a war in the Pacific, as it continually defies UN mandates and actively seeks to create a missile that can reach the US. Led by its autocratic and dangerous leader, North Korea cannot be dismissed, and the US must ramp up its exercises with its allies to deter a nuclear threat. Democracies around the world must be vigilant about deterring nuclear action.
