North Korea vows ‘more offensive action’ after latest missile launch

North Korea has warned that it will take “more offensive action” following its latest ballistic missile launch, a move that has drawn sharp criticism from Washington and Seoul.

The missile test, conducted on Friday, came barely a week after US President Donald Trump, during a regional tour, indicated interest in meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un an offer Pyongyang has yet to acknowledge.

Reacting to the growing tensions, North Korea’s defence minister, No Kwang Chol, accused the United States of becoming “brazen in its military moves to threaten the security” of the country. He claimed Washington was “intentionally escalating the political and military tension in the region,” according to the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

“We will show more offensive action against the enemies’ threat,” he warned.

Before the launch, US Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth and his South Korean counterpart had visited the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ), where they reaffirmed their countries’ “strong combined defence posture” and close security cooperation.

The arrival of the US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, USS George Washington, in the South Korean port city of Busan on Wednesday further angered Pyongyang. North Korea’s defence minister described the deployment as an act “escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula” and accused Hegseth of attempting to “fan up war hysterics” with his Demlitarised Zone visit.

In response to the missile launch, the US Indo-Pacific Command said the test “highlights the destabilising impact” of North Korea’s continued provocations, adding that Washington is “consulting closely with our allies and partners.”

South Korea’s military also condemned the launch, urging Pyongyang to “immediately cease all actions that heighten tensions between the two Koreas.”

The latest developments come as US President Trump recently approved South Korea’s plan to develop a nuclear-powered submarine a significant advancement for Seoul’s defence capabilities that experts warn could trigger an aggressive response from North Korea.

South Korean lawmakers, briefed by the defence intelligence agency, said earlier this week that Pyongyang appears prepared to conduct its seventh nuclear test at any time, pending approval from leader Kim Jong Un.

(Reuters)