As North Korea test-fired a new tactical guided weapon last week under the supervision of Kim Jong Un, its closest ally Beijing barely seemed to raise an eyebrow despite the high stakes.
Missile tests have taken place with increasing frequency in North Korea in recent months, but this time it was testing a new weapons system aimed at improving its nuclear capability.
North Korean media described the weapon as one of “great significance” that would drastically improve the “firepower of the frontline long-range artillery units and enhancing the efficiency in the operation of tactical nukes”.
The test, coinciding with the 110th anniversary of the birth of the country’s founder Kim Il Sung, also followed a series of launches this year that have raised alarm in South Korea and Japan, as well as in the United States. In March, the North test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) for the first time in four years, breaking its self-imposed moratorium by firing off their “largest nuclear-capable missile,” according to NK News.
