North Korea launches long-range missile designed to strike US

South Korea said it detected a ballistic missile launch from North Korea's capital region around 7.10 am on Thursday and that the weapon flew toward the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan.

In Short

• North Korea's missile launch likely aimed at grabbing US attention before polls
• South Korea and Japan coordinating with US on North Korea's launch
• US condemns launch as violation of UN resolutions

North Korea test-launched a suspected new long-range missile designed to strike the continental US on Thursday, its neighbours said, as the US warned that North Korean troops in Russian uniforms are heading toward Ukraine likely to augment Russian forces and join the war.

The specific long-range missile capabilities North Korea was testing were not known, but the launch was likely meant to grab American attention ahead of the US election on Tuesday.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected a ballistic missile launch from North Korea’s capital region around 7.10 am and that the weapon flew toward the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. It said the weapon was launched on a high angle and it was suspected of being a long-range ballistic missile.

Japanese Defence Minister Gen Nakatani told reporters that a preliminary examination shows the launch could involve a new missile, citing its flight duration of one hour and 26 minutes, which he said is the longest for a North Korean missile test. He said the missile landed in waters outside of the Japanese exclusive economic zone but condemned North Korea’s nuclear and missile development for threatening the safety of Japan and the international community.

South Korea and Japan said they are closely coordinating with the US about the North Korean launch.

The US described the weapon as an intercontinental ballistic missile and condemned North Korea for the launch, saying it violated UN Security Council resolutions and “needlessly” risked raising tensions.

“It only demonstrates that the DPRK continues to prioritise its unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programmes over the well-being of its people,” US national security council spokesperson Sean Savett said in a statement. He added that the US would work to ensure the security of the American homeland and its South Korea and Japanese allies.

North Korea last test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile in December 2023, when it launched the solid-fueled Hwasong-18. Missiles with built-in solid propellants are easier to move and hide and can be launched quicker than liquid-propellant weapons.

South Korea’s military intelligence agency told lawmakers on Wednesday that North Korea was close to test-firing a long-range missile capable of reaching the United States and has also likely completed preparations for its seventh nuclear test.

North Korea has made strides in its missile technologies in recent years, but many foreign experts believe the country has yet to acquire a functioning nuclear-armed missile that can strike the US mainland. They say North Korea likely possesses short-range missiles that can deliver nuclear strikes across all of South Korea.

One of the technological hurdles North Korea still faces is for its weapons to be capable of surviving the harsh conditions of atmospheric reentry. South Korean officials and experts earlier said North Korea may test-launch an ICBM on a normal angle to verify that capability.

In September, North Korean state media published a photo of Kim inspecting what appeared to be a 12-axle missile launch vehicle, the largest mobile launch platform the country has disclosed so far. Observers cited the vehicle as evidence North Korea could be developing an ICBM that is bigger than its existing ones.

In the past two years, Kim has used Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a window to ramp up weapons tests and threats while also expanding military cooperation with Moscow. South Korea, the US and others have recently accused North Korea of dispatching thousands of troops to support Russia’s warfighting against Ukraine. They’ve said North Korea has already shipped artillery, missiles and other convectional arms to Russia.

North Korea’s possible participation in the Ukraine war would mark a serious escalation. South Korea, the US and their partners also worry about what North Korea could get from Russia in return for joining Russia’s war against Ukraine. Aside from his soldiers’ wages, experts say Kim Jong Un likely hopes to get high-tech Russian technology that can perfect his nuclear-capable missiles.

On Wednesday, Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said North Korean troops wearing Russian uniforms and carrying Russian equipment are moving toward Ukraine, in what he called a dangerous and destabilising development. Austin spoke at a news conference in Washington with South Korean Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun.

South Korea said on Wednesday that North Korea has sent more than 11,000 troops to Russia and that more than 3,000 of them have been moved close to battlefields in western Russia.