On Wednesday, October 22, North Korea fired multiple ballistic missiles, marking its first launch in months—just a week before world leaders, including US President Donald Trump, are set to arrive in South Korea for a summit.
Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff reported detecting several projectiles believed to be short-range ballistic missiles. The missiles were launched around 8:10 a.m. local time (2310 GMT Tuesday) from an area south of Pyongyang and traveled approximately 350 kilometers (217 miles).
This launch is the first since South Korean President Lee Jae-myung took office in June.
The missile tests come ahead of President Trump’s expected arrival in South Korea on October 29 for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum. Trump has expressed hopes to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un again, potentially within the year, following three high-profile summits during his first term.
North Korean state media recently indicated Kim remains open to future talks but insists the US must abandon its “delusional” demand for Pyongyang’s denuclearization. In September, Kim said he had “fond memories” of previous meetings with Trump and welcomed another, provided the US drops its obsession with denuclearization and genuinely seeks peaceful coexistence.
Regarding the timing, Park Won-gon, a professor at Seoul’s Ewha Womans University, suggested the launch was “a response to Trump and his recent moves,” and that Kim is “asserting his regime’s presence during an event hosted by Seoul, as he’s done before.”
Despite ongoing UN sanctions targeting its nuclear and missile programs, North Korea continues to develop its arsenal. Earlier this month, it unveiled the Hwasong-20, which it described as its “most powerful” intercontinental ballistic missile, at a military parade attended by top Russian and Chinese officials. Pyongyang claimed the missile’s strike range “knows no bounds.”
In September, Kim oversaw the ninth and final test of a solid-fuel engine intended for long-range nuclear missiles, suggesting a full test-fire of a new ICBM could happen soon.
North Korea has repeatedly declared it has no plans to abandon its banned weapons and is instead strengthening ties with traditional allies China and Russia.
