The U.S. urged North Korea to return to negotiations and completely denuclearize after the country revealed a new missile Saturday, a government official told The Daily Caller News Foundation.
The missile was paraded through Pyongyang during a celebration of the 75th anniversary of North Korea’s ruling party Saturday, according to Reuters, marking the first showing of the country’s ballistic missiles since North Korea leader Kim Jong-un first began to meet with international leaders, including President Donald Trump, in 2018. (RELATED: North Korea Searches For South Korean Official They Apologized For Killing)
“The United States remains guided by the vision President Trump and Chairman Kim set forth in Singapore and calls on the DPRK to engage in sustained and substantive negotiations to achieve complete denuclearization,” the U.S. official told the Daily Caller News Foundation Saturday.
“It is disappointing to see the DPRK continuing to prioritize its prohibited nuclear and ballistic missile program,” the official said.
If the weapon is usable, then it would be considered one of the world’s largest intercontinental ballistic missiles that is road-mobile, analysts told Reuters.
“This missile is a monster,” said Melissa Hanham, deputy director of the Open Nuclear Network, according to Reuters.
Officials in South Korea and the U.S. said before the event that Kim may take advantage of the celebration to show what he promised was a “strategic weapon,” Reuters reported.
Largest *road-mobile* liquid-fueled missile anywhere, to be clear. https://t.co/c4Y43cXOcH
— Ankit Panda (@nktpnd) October 10, 2020
North Korea unveils what analysts believe to be one of the world’s largest ballistic missiles https://t.co/5rhMfp4wHs
— CNN Breaking News (@cnnbrk) October 10, 2020
During the ceremony, thousands of soldiers marched and weapons, including tanks and ballistic missiles, were showcased in the Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, the Associated Press reported.
Kim delivered a speech where he said the weapons were not meant to antagonize foreign governments, but as a deterrent, the AP reported.
But “if any force harms the safety of our nation, we will fully mobilize the strongest offensive might in a pre-emptive manner to punish them,” Kim said, according to the AP.
North Korean state news agency KCNA quoted Chinese President Xi Jinping: “We have an intent to successfully defend, consolidate and develop the China-Korea relations together with Korean comrades and propel the long-lasting and stable development of the socialist cause of the two countries,” according to another Reuters report.
North Korea’s longest-range missile was also revealed and is seemingly a new submarine-launched ballistic missile, Reuters reported.
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