(Bloomberg) — North Korea appears to have launched its first ballistic missile in about two months, just days after leader Kim Jong Un indicated that returning to stalled nuclear talks with the U.S. was a low priority for him in the coming year.
North Korea fired an unidentified projectile into waters off its east coast Wednesday, South Korea’s military said, while Japan’s Coast Guard said the object appeared to be a ballistic missile and seems to have already landed.
No other details were immediately available on the launch. North Korea’s last major test came in October, when it said it test-fired a new type of ballistic missile from an existing submarine, potentially slashing the time before U.S. and allied forces in the region would need to be concerned about nuclear strikes from the sea.
Kim Jong Un Places Food Crisis Above Nuclear Talks in 2022
The latest launch comes after Kim told a policy-setting meeting of his ruling party that his state should focus on easing food shortages and containing Covid, in a downbeat New Year’s policy assessment that suggested Kim had little intention of returning to the nuclear disarmament talks that have been stalled for about two years.
(Updates with details)
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