The United States has said it will urge the UN Security Council to “update and strengthen” sanctions on North Korea over its “increasingly dangerous challenges”, a move likely to be opposed by Pyongyang, China and its allies. Russia. read more Thursday’s launch was the first complete ICBM test by North Korea’s nuclear weapons since 2017. Flight data showed the missile flew higher and for longer than any of North Korea’s previous tests before crashing into the sea west of Japan. read more Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register What North Korea calls the Hwasong-17 would be the largest liquid fuel rocket ever launched from any country by a mobile road launcher, analysts say. Its range and size suggest that North Korea plans to overthrow it with multiple warheads that could hit several targets or bait to confuse missile defenses, they say. read more The leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized nations and the European Union have condemned the test as a “reckless” threat to international peace and security and a threat to international civil aviation and navigation. They said they demanded a single answer. North Korea’s return to arms tests, experts say capable of hitting the United States, is an undesirable additional challenge for President Joe Biden as he responds to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The latest ICBM launches and North Korea’s nuclear tests in 2017 have provoked UN Security Council sanctions, but the United States and its allies oppose Russia and China over the Ukraine war, making such a response more difficult. . However, the US ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, announced the imposition of new sanctions at the meeting of the 15-member Security Council on Friday. North Korea’s nuclear tests and ballistic missile launches have long been banned by the Security Council and are subject to sanctions that have been stepped up over the years. However, while backing the sanctions in 2017, China and Russia have since pushed for relaxation to encourage North Korea to return to denuclearization talks with the United States and others. “Now is not the time to end our sanctions, this is the time to impose them,” said Thomas Greenfield. “Offering sanctions relief, without substantial diplomatic progress, would channel more revenue to the regime and accelerate the achievement of WMD (weapons of mass destruction) and ballistic weapons targets.” China’s ambassador to the UN Zhang Jun told the council “no party should take action that would lead to greater tensions” and added, referring to North Korea with the initials of its official name: “The US should not continue to step aside the justified demands of the PRC It should offer an attractive proposal to pave the way for the timely resumption of the dialogue “. Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency earlier quoted the Russian Foreign Ministry as saying that Russia and China had agreed to work closely on the situation in Korea. read more “Concerns have been expressed about the latest developments in the subregion,” he said during a meeting between Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov and China’s representative for the Korean Peninsula, adding that they stressed the need to step up efforts for a just political and diplomatic solution. North Korean state media have reported that leader Kim Jong Un ordered the test because of the “daily escalation of military tensions in and around the Korean Peninsula” and the “inevitable long-term confrontation with US imperialists posing a threat”. . . “Strategic forces … are fully prepared to curb and completely curb any dangerous military attempt by US imperialists,” Kim said as he oversaw the launch. It came after the election of a new, conservative South Korean administration committed to a more muscular military strategy toward North Korea. In a conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping after the launch, South Korean President-elect Yun Suk-yol called for close coordination for the complete denuclearization of North Korea, his office said. Xi said Beijing and Seoul should strengthen mutual political trust, Chinese state media reported. China called for restraint on “all sides” after the test. read more “URBAN DEMONSTRATION” Washington on Thursday announced its own sanctions on two Russian companies, a Russian and a North Korean, and the Foreign Affairs Bureau of North Korea’s Second Academy of Sciences for transporting sensitive objects to North Korea’s missile program. read more Kim said the test would help convince people of the strength of his strategic forces. “Any forces should be forced to be well aware of the fact that they will have to pay a very high price before they dare to try to violate the security of our country,” he said. North Korean state media showed a huge rocket, painted black with a white nose, mounted on a column of flame from a launch vehicle. He said the Hwasong-17 flew for 1,090 km (680 miles) at an altitude of 6,248.5 km (3,905 miles) and hit a target at sea. Similar numbers were reported from Japan and South Korea. The Seoul-based NK Pro website said differences in state-of-the-art media and video indicate it may have been filmed at different dates, raising the possibility that North Korea was hiding details. Pyongyang has never acknowledged what South Korea said was a failed launch from the same airport last week, and on Thursday South Korean news agency Yonhap quoted unnamed officials as saying they were considering whether the latest test could be a 15-year-old. ICBM. test was launched in November 2017. Officials in Seoul and Washington have previously said that the February 27 and March 5 launches involved parts of the Hwasong-17 ICBM system, most likely in preparation for a full test. North Korea called Thursday’s test “an impressive demonstration of great military strength.” Kim, who appears in a video at the launch site wearing a leather jacket and sunglasses, described it as a “miracle” and an “invaluable” victory for the Korean people. read more Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register Report by Josh Smith. Additional references from Ju-min Park in Seoul, David Brunnstrom in Washington and Michelle Nichols at the United Nations. Editing by Lincoln Feast, Robert Birsel, Philippa Fletcher and Daniel Wallis Our role models: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
