Politics
Biden threatens North Korea with retaliation after Kim Jong-un’s missile test launches
JOE Biden threatened North Korea with retaliation after Kim Jong-un’s missile test launch.
The president was questioned about the two ballistic missiles that were sent on Wednesday, and asked “what actions” he will take, if any.
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Biden made the comments during his first press conference as president[/caption]
“Let me say that, number one, UN resolution 1718 was violated by those particular missiles that were tested,” he said.
He went on to confirm that he is speaking to “allies and partners,” adding that there will be “responses if they choose to escalate, we will respond accordingly.”
However, he went on to say he is also “prepared for some form of diplomacy, but it has to be conditioned upon the end result of denuclearization.”
Just hours before the press conference, the US blasted Kim Jong-un after the missiles were fired into the Sea of Japan.
A Pentagon official called the launch “a flagrant violation of regional security and Security Council resolutions,” in an interview with Sky News.
The launch, which came in violation of a UN Security Council ban on Pyongyang testing ballistic missiles, is the second such launch by North Korea in less than a week.
Both launches also mark North Korea’s first significant provocation against the US since President Joe Biden was sworn into office.
The two missiles fell in the waters that lie between North Korea and Japan.
South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff said in a statement that the short-range missiles had been fired from the Hamju area of South Hamgyong province, off North Korea’s east coast, at 7.06am local time.
The projectiles traveled around 280 miles and reached an altitude of around 30 miles, the officials said.
US Indo-Pacific Command, which oversees US military operations in Asia, said the launch “highlights the threat that North Korea’s illicit weapons program poses to its neighbors and the international community.
“The US commitment to the defense of the Republic of Korea and Japan remains ironclad,” a spokesperson said.
Seoul’s National Security Council also condemned the test, expressing “deep concern” and said it would review security on the Korean Peninsula with the US.
Similarly, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga denounced the launch as a “threat to the peace and security” of Japan and a violation of United Nations resolutions.
“Japan lodges its serious protest and strongly condemns,” Suga said, warning the Japanese public to brace for the “contingency situation.”
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“It is necessary to enhance monitoring and surveillance more than before,” he continued.
“I have held an emergency National Security Council meeting. We will work closely together with related nations including the United States and South Korea, and we are determined to protect the people’s lives and peaceful livelihood.”
Japan’s Defense Ministry said the projectiles are thought to have landed outside of Japanese territory and its exclusive economic zone.
