North Korea: Why did the country conduct so many missile tests in January | Globalism

According to the armed forces South KoreaReports indicate that the missiles were launched from an airport near the North Korean capital, Pyongyang. Monday morning (17, local time).

the Japan He also confirmed the completion of the test. This was the fourth missile launch before North Korea Within two weeks.

The United Nations (UN) ban North Korea Conducting ballistic and nuclear weapons tests, as well as imposing harsh sanctions on the state.

However, the Asian country often scoffs at the ban, the leader Kim Jong-un She promised to bolster North Korea’s defenses.

Friday, Pyongyang He said he fired ballistic missiles Short term, while days ago It conducted two tests of what it claimed were hypersonic missiles, which are difficult to detect.

The frequency and timing of testing, in January, is unusual. the North Korea He tends to make his launches to celebrate events of great political importance in the country or as a sign of his dissatisfaction with military exercises that are carried out jointly by South Korea and hair United State.

Launches generally develop missile capabilities and maintain operational readiness. According to Ankit Panda, an expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, recent tests seem to confirm this trend.

At the same time, “Kim Jong-un “In a time of economic hardship, these launches allow you to send a message that national defense priorities will not be neglected,” Banda told the BBC.

a North Korea He suffered from food shortages and a weak economy. They are the results of a blockade imposed by the regime itself, to keep COVID-19 away from its borders, which has suspended trade with the state. China, its largest economic and political ally – although there are reports that this trade could soon resume.

Kim recently admitted that his country was facing a “great struggle of life and death” and also said he would increase its military power, including developing hypersonic missiles.

negotiations with United Statewho want North Korea Give up your nuclear weapons, I’ve been paralyzed since President Joe Biden took office. The Biden administration imposed its first sanctions on North Korea Last week in response to some tests conducted in early January.

Park Won-joon, a professor of North Korean studies at the University of Iowa, said Monday’s launch could be a “tougher reaction” to the sanctions, as it shows “the North has no intention of being intimidated by the United States.”South Korea).

The launches take place just weeks before the Winter Olympics, a prestigious and highly politically sensitive event China Which is scheduled to start on February 4 in Beijing.

“I imagine it China I do not like North Korea A missile test in its vicinity on the eve of the opening of the Beijing Olympics,” Chad O’Carroll, an analyst specializing in North Korea.

“If this continues, we should not discount the possibility of it. [a Coreia do Norte] May be uncomfortable with China for something.”

However, Banda said that while “Beijing may not be satisfied with these tests, they are likely to be acceptable enough”, given that they do not involve testing of nuclear weapons or long-range missiles, which he called “the limits of China“.

With recent reports that North Korea Trade may resume with China Soon,” the timing suggests that Beijing is more than complicit in Pyongyang’s provocations; China supports North Korea economically and economically [com os norte-coreanos] Military “specialist in North Korea Liv Eric Easley.

Considering its strategic relationship with ChinaThe North Korean leadership is likely to finish its missile tests and military exercises in early 2022, before the Beijing Olympics.”

‘The timing also indicates that North Korea Do not want to be silent before the presidential elections in South Korea [marcada para 9 de março] or appear weak during China Send aid across the border.”

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