- South Korea says it saw 180 North Korean military aircraft in four-hour span.
- US Defense Secretary calls on Pyongyang to cease “irresponsible and reckless activities”.
- The UN Security Council is anticipated to convene Friday to address North Korea’s latest missile tests, the US says.
South Korea sent out roughly 80 fighter aero planes after spotting a lot of North Korean warplanes over a four-hour period on Friday, escalating tensions in the region, according to the country’s military.
A day after Pyongyang is thought to have performed the failed I.B.M. test, the South Korean military said in a statement that it had seen roughly 180 North Korean military aircraft between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. local time (ICBM).
Tensions in the Korean Peninsula began rising Monday, when the “Vigilant Storm” joint military drills began between the United States and South Korea, involving hundreds of aircraft and thousands of service members from both countries, according to the US.
South Korea responded with three surface-to-air missiles after North Korea launched 23 missiles from its east and west coasts on Wednesday, the most it has ever shot in a single day, accusing the allies of engaging in provocative behavior.
Friday’s South Korean deployment included an unspecified number of F-35A stealth fighter jets, the statement said, and the South Korean warplanes participating in the ongoing joint maneuvers had also “maintained a readiness posture,” the South Korean military said.
After Thursday’s suspected ICBM test, the US and South Korea announced they’d extend the drills for an extra day until November 5, a move denounced by a North Korean official as a “very dangerous and false choice,” according to state media.
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Later, after meeting with his South Korean counterpart at the Pentagon, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin accused North Korea of “irresponsible and reckless activities.”
“We’ve said before these kinds of activities are destabilizing to the region potentially. So we call on them to cease that type of activity and to begin to engage in serious dialogue,” Austin said.
On Friday, the UN Security Council is anticipated to convene to address Pyongyang’s latest missile tests. An open meeting had been requested by the US, UK, France, Albania, Ireland, and Norway, according to a spokesperson for the US Mission to the UN.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the UN, criticized North Korea’s activities in an interview with media channel on Wednesday, claiming Pyongyang has violated numerous Security Council resolutions.
Thomas-Greenfield said the UN would be “putting pressure” on China and Russia to improve and enhance such sanctions. She declined to say whether US President Joe Biden would raise sanctions with China’s President Xi at the G20 but said it was “on the President’s mind.”
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