SEOUL: North Korea on Monday fired a ballistic missile that flew 1,100 kilometers before landing in waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan, South Korea’s military said, extending its heightened weapons testing activities into 2025 weeks before Donald Trump returns as US president.
The South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile was fired from an area near the North Korean capital of Pyongyang and that the launch preparations were detected in advance by the US and South Korean militaries. It denounced the launch as a provocation that poses a serious threat to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.
The joint chiefs said the military was strengthening its surveillance and defense posture in preparation for possible additional launches and sharing information on the missile with the United States and Japan.
The launch came as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was visiting Seoul for talks with South Korean allies over the North Korean nuclear threat and other issues.
Blinken’s visit comes amid political turmoil in South Korea following President Yoon Suk Yeol’s short-lived martial law decree and subsequent impeachment by parliament last month, which experts say puts the country at a disadvantage in getting a steady footing with Trump ahead of his return to the White House.
In a year-end political conference, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to implement the “toughest” anti-US policy and criticized the Biden administration’s efforts to strengthen security cooperation with Seoul and Tokyo, which he described as a “nuclear military bloc for aggression.”
North Korean state media did not specify Kim’s policy plans or mention any specific comments about Trump. During his first term, Trump met Kim three times for talks on the North’s nuclear program.
Many experts, however, say a quick resumption of Kim-Trump summitry is unlikely as Trump would first focus on conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. North Korea’s support for Russia’s war against Ukraine also poses a challenge to efforts to revive diplomacy, experts say.
Before his presidency faltered over the ill-conceived power grab, Yoon worked closely with US President Joe Biden to expand joint military exercises, update nuclear deterrence strategies and strengthen trilateral security cooperation with Tokyo.

SYDNEY: Cricket’s World Test Championship final is still five months away but it is already playing on the mind of Australia skipper Pat Cummins, saying the defense of their title is “a huge goal” after conquering India.

Australia surged into a June showdown against South Africa at Lord’s with a six-wicket victory in the fifth Test against India in Sydney on Sunday.

The thrilling win sealed a first series triumph against their South Asian rivals in a decade.

It also confirmed their place in a clash against South Africa that will determine the world’s most consistent red-ball side over the last two years from the nine teams contesting the WTC.

“To hold the Border-Gavaskar Trophy is an amazing feeling, and the extra layer is now securing a spot again in the World Test Championship final, which was always a huge goal for us in this cycle,” Cummins said.

“We talk about the World Test Championship a lot. It’s a trophy we’re really proud to hold so we want to go back and defend it.

“I think it’s a great tournament in that you’ve got to play well consistently and across all different conditions against different teams.

“We can’t wait to get over there.”

South Africa booked their spot under the WTC’s average points system when they beat Pakistan in a dramatic two-wicket win at Centurion late last month.

Australia play two Tests in Sri Lanka starting later this month before a lengthy red-ball break heading into the WTC final.

Cummins appears likely to miss the Sri Lanka tour for the birth of his second child, with Steve Smith in pole position to take over as captain.

But the Australian skipper is adamant that after four year in the role, he has no plans to hand over the armband permanently anytime soon.

“First of all, I absolutely love what I do. That’s the biggest driver in wanting to play Test cricket and work with this team and support staff,” Cummins said.

“I absolutely love everything about it, it’s that much fun. If I can keep doing it for a while, even better.”

Cricket Australia meanwhile said nearly 838,000 spectators attended the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, despite two matches ending within three days.

The numbers were boosted by the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne going all five days, with a record 373,691 people turning out across the match.