Tensions on the Korean Peninsula rise
On October 4, North Korea fired a medium-range ballistic missile (IRBM), Hwasong-12, which flew over the Japanese region of Hokkaido before sinking into the Pacific Ocean. The missile covered a distance of at least 4.500 km, far greater than that between the strategic island of Guam, home to US military installations, and the Korean peninsula. In the following days, two more short-range ballistic missiles (SRBM), probably KN-25 and KN-23, were fired from Pyongyang into the Sea of Japan, in response to the US decision to redeploy the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan in the area.
Kim Jong-un’s decision to conduct 7 launches in just two weeks has a clear political significance. The North Korean acceleration, indeed, took place in the very days of US Vice-President Kamala Harris’ visit to South Korea, which included a stopover in the Korean Demilitarised Zone. Moreover, the North Korean launches intensified after a joint naval exercise between the navies of South Korea, the United States and Japan, focusing on anti-submarine manoeuvres, took place on September 30. Alongside the political motivations, the decision to increase the number of tests may also be linked to the growing risk of obsolescence of the North Korean missile stockpile.
In response to North Korean launches, US and South Korean armed forces bombed mock targets in the Yellow Sea and fired 4 ground-to-ground missiles into the Sea of Japan. Against this background, the United States, South Korea, and Japan have also announced the intention to strengthen the military coordination in order to boost their long-term deterrence capabilities to the North Korean threat.
As tensions rise, new construction near Tunnel No. 4 of North Korea’s Punggye-ri nuclear test site has been reported, which seems to suggest Pyongyang’s willingness to increase its testing capabilities. The recent escalation, in fact, seems to be a prelude to the implementation of the seventh North Korean nuclear test, which could have a media impact on the upcoming Chinese Congress and, besides, could become one of the core issues of the US mid-term election campaign.
