NKorea starts 2023 by firing missile

| January 1, 2023

North Korea fired a ballistic missile over the sea to the east of the Korean Peninsula in the early hours of New Year’s Day, Yonhap news agency reported citing the South Korean military.

The move comes not even 24 hours after North Korea launched three ballistic missiles on Saturday.

The short-range ballistic missile was fired around 250am local time from around the capital Pyongyang, Yonhap said, citing South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The launch follows an unprecedented number of missile tests conducted by North Korea in 2022, as Pyongyang presses on with weapons development amid speculation it could test a nuclear weapon for a seventh time.

North Korean state media KCNA said on Saturday that its central party had engaged in the fifth day of a plenary session on Friday to solidify strategy, with the session expected to continue, making it the longest ever according to Yonhap. The results of the session could be known as early as Sunday.