JAKARTA: Secretary of State Antony Blinken promised Friday that the United States would work with allies to deter “aggression” from North Korea, which a day earlier announced the test launch of its latest intercontinental ballistic missile.
The top US diplomat met jointly with the South Korean and Japanese foreign ministers on the sidelines of a Southeast Asian meeting in Jakarta, with all three condemning what Blinken called “provocations” from Pyongyang.
“We are joined resolutely in a common defence and making sure that we are doing everything possible to deter and defend against any aggression,” Blinken said.
South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin noted that the test came just as regional powers were meeting for the talks in Jakarta, where North Korea sent an official.
“What North Korea is doing is completely against expectations of the international community,” Park said.
“I hope that our trilateral dialogue today will strengthen our resolve to respond firmly and resolutely – unequivocally – against North Korea’s continuous provocations and send the message that their provocations will not go unpunished.”
North Korea said leader Kim Jong Un personally oversaw the launch of the missile, which the totalitarian state had fired only once before, in April.
The ICBM flew 1,001 kilometres (622 miles) at a maximum altitude of 6,648 kilometres before splashing into the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan, the official Korean Central News Agency reported.
The launch was a “grand explosion” that shook “the whole planet”, KCNA said.
Diplomacy has been at a standstill, with North Korea refusing offers by President Joe Biden’s administration for talks, after Kim was able to hold historic summits with previous president Donald Trump.
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