North Korea tests two new ballistic missiles

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In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center, oversees a launch of, what it says, the country’s newly built Hwasongpho-11-Da-4.5 ballistic missile at an undisclosed place in North Korea Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via The Associated Press

North Korea tests two new ballistic missiles

North Korean media outlet Korean Central News Agency on Thursday said the regime had successfully tested one missile designed to carry what it characterized as a 4.5-ton super-large conventional warhead and another likely designed to carry a nuclear warhead. The South Korean and Japanese militaries on Wednesday reported that the hermit nation had test-fired missiles toward its eastern seas. Japan’s coast guard said the missiles fell into the ocean between the Korean Peninsula and Japan.

What else is happening in North Korea? The secretive nation last week published photos of a facility where it claims to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has called for a rapid expansion of his nuclear weapons program and the nation is rumored to be sending weapons to Russia for use in its war against Ukraine. It remains unclear exactly how much bomb fuel North Korea is capable of producing.

Dig deeper: Read William Inboden’s opinion piece about the new nuclear age.

Lauren Canterberry

Lauren Canterberry is a reporter for WORLD. She graduated from the World Journalism Institute and the University of Georgia with a degree in journalism, both in 2017. She worked as a local reporter in Texas and now lives in Georgia with her husband.