South Korea and the US have announced that North Korea is readying another intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) system test as soon as this week, the South Korean Yonhap news agency reported on Monday.
According to the outlet's sources, the signs of the forthcoming test arose after Pyongyang was accused of testing new ICBM systems on February 27 and March 5. Officials from South Korea and the US suspect the Hwasong-17 ICBM, which was revealed during a military parade in October 2020, was involved.
"Though we can't say definitively when a missile will be launched, we have been keeping close tabs on the possibility," an unnamed government source is quoted as saying.
The timeframe of the prospective launch is expected to be influenced by weather and other factors, per the report. Sources reportedly noted that if North Korea goes ahead with a launch, it could use a transporter erector launcher (TEL) to fire a missile at the Sunan airfield, which was the site of the two previous tests.
Earlier, the missiles were fired at a high angle from the airfield, and it was reportedly adjusted to follow the trajectory of a medium-range ballistic missile. According to the South Korean military, the missile that was launched on February 27 flew roughly 300 kilometers at a height of 620 kilometers, while that launched on March 5 traveled some 270 kilometers and had a top altitude of 560 kilometers.
North Korea said that the launches were "reconnaissance satellite" development experiments.
After talks between North Korea's leader, Kim Jong-un, and then-US President Donald Trump in late June 2019, the DPRK announced a moratorium on long-range ballistic missile and nuclear tests. Kim, however, claimed a year later that he was no longer bound by the non-binding verbal agreement.
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