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Tag: North Korean leader

  • State media: North Korea tests powerful rocket engine

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    North Korea has tested a new type of solid-fuel engine for intercontinental missiles, state media reported on Tuesday.

    State news agency KCNA reported that ruler Kim Jong Un personally attended the ninth and final ground test of the new engine at the Academy of Chemical Materials in Pyongyang on Monday.

    According to the agency, the engine’s maximum thrust is 1,971 kilonewtons, which would be extraordinarily high by international standards. The information provided by North Korean authorities cannot be independently verified.

    In recent years, North Korea has developed various types of intercontinental missiles with a sufficient flight radius to reach the US mainland.

    Solid-fuelled missiles are considered a particularly serious threat as, unlike liquid-fuelled missiles, they are not only easier to transport but can also be deployed much more quickly.

    Kim is receiving increasing diplomatic support from both Moscow and Beijing. Earlier in September, the North Korean ruler travelled to China for the first time in six years, where he met head of state Xi Jinping in Beijing for talks. Kim and Xi agreed to closer ties during their meeting.

    North Korea has also entered into military co-operation with Russia, which is unprecedented for the country.

    According to estimates by the South Korean secret service, Pyongyang has sent around 13,000 soldiers to support Russia in its war against Ukraine. In return, North Korea received security guarantees, foreign currency and reportedly also military technology from Moscow.

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  • North Korea’s Kim calls for military readiness against any provocations

    North Korea’s Kim calls for military readiness against any provocations

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    SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has called for the military’s readiness to respond to any provocation by enemies, state media said on Friday, after Pyongyang vowed to deploy stronger armed forces and new weapons on its border with the South.

    Visiting the air force headquarters on Thursday to mark the country’s air men day, Kim rolled out operational strategic guidelines to improve the military’s readiness and war capabilities, KCNA news agency said.

    The visit was followed by a stop at a fighter wing where the pilots staged an air show, it said.

    “(Kim) highly evaluated the pilots’ tight readiness to perform air combat missions without a glitch regardless of any unfavourable settings,” KCNA said.

    North Korea last week successfully launched its first reconnaissance satellite, which it has said was designed to monitor U.S. and South Korean military movements.

    The United States and its allies have strongly condemned the launch as a violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions. Pyongyang has said it would launch more satellites, calling it an exercise of a right to self-defence.

    South Korea has suspended part of an inter-Korean military deal in response to the satellite launch and stepped up surveillance along the heavily fortified border with the North, to which Pyongyang responded by vowing stronger armed forces and new weapons along the border area.

    The United States on Thursday targeted North Korea with fresh sanctions over the satellite launch, designating foreign-based agents it accused of facilitating sanctions evasion.

    (Reporting by Soo-hyang Choi; Editing by Richard Chang)

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