This morning’s launch aimed at provoking greater disaccord between China and the United States. The medium-range missile launched from Sinpo landed in the Sea of Japan. Beijing does not want the fall of Kim Jong-un, or the unification of the two Koreas.
Seoul (AsiaNews / Agencies) - North Korea this morning carried out a new missile test, on the eve of a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump. The missile was fired from the Sinpo base, in the northeast of the country and flew for 60 km until before crashing into the Sea of Japan. According to the US military the missile should be the KN-15 medium-range type.
Japan spoke of "provocation" and expressed "strong protest" for the experiment.
The launch comes after a series of tests in recent months, with joints missiles in international waters close to Japan. Pyongyang justifies its actions as a reaction to the annual joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea.
This morning’s launch seems aimed at provoking greater disaccord between China and the US, on the eve of the two presidents meeting in Florida. Days ago, Trump said in an interview that if China did not help to contain Pyongyang, the United States would do it "alone."
After all embargoes and UN sanctions, China is still the closest ally of North Korea, although in the last two years, relations have become more difficult following China's accession to UN sanctions for refusing to stop Pyongyang tests and its nuclear program.
On the other hand, according to analysts, Beijing does not seem to want either the fall of the regime of Kim Jong-un - which would bring a wave of refugees to its borders - nor the unification of the two Koreas, which would make the new state a strong and dangerous competitor.