North Korea cites Venezuela in hypersonic missile test

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un defended his country’s ballistic missile provocations on Jan. 4, saying, “Our actions are clearly aimed at gradually enhancing our nuclear deterrence.” He added that recent geopolitical crises and multiple international incidents justify the measures. His remarks suggested that the first ballistic missile launch of the new year was a protest against the sudden ousting of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by the United States, marking the first time Kim directly responded to a U.S. strike on Venezuela.

North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency reported on Jan. 5 that hypersonic missiles fired the previous day from the Ryepo area in Pyongyang toward the northeast struck designated targets 1,000 kilometers away in the East Sea. Kim reportedly observed the launch exercise and said, “It is important and effective for demonstrating deterrence to continuously and repeatedly show adversaries the readiness and lethality of strategic offensive means. Openly, our actions are clearly aimed at gradually enhancing nuclear deterrence.”

The report did not specify the “geopolitical crises” or “international incidents” Kim referenced, but experts said the remarks appeared to be in response to the U.S. operation to remove Maduro.

Kim also said, “Recent efforts to operationalize and modernize our nuclear forces have achieved important results.” He emphasized that it is essential to continually upgrade military capabilities, particularly offensive weapons systems, calling it a necessary undertaking for self-defense. Ahead of the 9th Party Congress scheduled for early this year, Kim has conducted a series of military actions since the end of last year, using the rhetoric of “nuclear deterrence” and “self-defense” to justify the enhancement of North Korea’s nuclear and missile capabilities.

Experts say North Korea is likely to use the Venezuelan situation as a pretext for its nuclear development. Park Won-gon, a professor of North Korean studies at Ewha Womans University, said, “It is clear that Kim is paying close attention to the Venezuela case, signaling to the U.S. that he will never abandon nuclear development.” Hong Min, a senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification, added, “North Korea sent a message that it possesses nuclear capabilities and deterrence unmatched by Venezuela.”

North Korea’s ballistic missile launch was its first in about two months since Nov. 7 and the third since the inauguration of the Lee Jae-myung administration. The military believes the missile was likely the Hwasong-11Ma, a short-range ballistic missile equipped with a hypersonic glide vehicle mounted on the warhead of the North Korean version of the Iskander, known as the KN-23.


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