North Korea has flown a missile over Japan for the first time in five years
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris did not mince her words when she paid a visit to the demilitarised zone last week.
“In the North, we see a brutal dictatorship, rampant human rights violations and an unlawful weapons program that threatens peace and stability,” she said.
North Korea’s latest missile launch is the latest in a string of tests following Harris’ visit.
U.S. President Joe Biden spoke with Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida following Tuesday’s long-range missile. The pair condemned the test in the “strongest terms,” as they described it as a danger to the Japanese people.
Associate Professor Tilman Ruff from the University of Melbourne believes the threat of nuclear war has increased.
“This is clearly the time of greatest danger of nuclear war since the at least the Cuban missile crisis.”
North Korea has carried out over 30 missile tests this year, as authorities brace themselves for bigger weapon, which could reach the U.S. east coast.
in response to Tuesday’s test, South Korea and the U.S. fired a string of missiles into the East Sea.
5. The Musudan
The Musudan, or the Hwasong-10 is a medium-range ballistic missile, which has an estimated range of more than 4,000km.
The missile was first tested in October 2016 and is believed to be capable of reaching South Korea and Japan.
4. The KN-08
The KN-08 is a long-range ballistic missile, which boasts an estimated range of more than 6,000km.
While North Korea had two unsuccessful tests of this weapon in 2016, it was successfully tested in 2017.
3. The Pukguksong-2
The Pukguksong-2 is a medium-range ballistic missile, which has an estimated range of more than 2,000km.
This is a land-based variant of the Pukguksong-1 weapon, which is submarine-launched.
The missile was first tested in February of 2017 and is believed to be capable of reaching South Korea and Japan.
2. The Hwasong-14
The Hwasong-14 is North Korea’s first intercontinental ballistic missile. It is also one of their most powerful missiles, with an estimated range of more than 8,000km.
The missile was first tested in July 2017 and is believed to be capable of reaching New York.
1. The Hwasong-12
The latest missile test over Japanese territory is understood to be an intermediate-range Hwasong-12.
This ballistic missile has an estimated range of more than 4,500km, and is believed to be capable of reaching the U.S. territory of Guam in the Pacific.
North Korea’s missile tests have risen under the rule of its current leader, Kim Jong-Un. In fact, there have been more test launches this year, than in the previous decade alone.
“If anybody thought that the risk of nuclear war went away with the end of the Cold War, then these current concerns should put an end to any such complacency.”
Associate Professor Tilman Ruff, the University of Melbourne
There are also a range of other weapons in the North Korean inventory, including a nuclear bomb, which is believed to be six times bigger than what the U.S. dropped on Hiroshima in 1945.
