Asia: Tensions Rise After Naval Drills Between South Korea, Japan, USA

The eyes of the world are fixed on the Middle East, but on the other side of the world, on the Korean peninsula, tensions are rising rapidly and risk becoming a real hotbed of war. North Korea launched several cruise missiles into the Yellow Sea on Wednesday morning. According to a note issued by Seoul’s military general staff, “the missiles followed a circular trajectory and then plunged into the waters west of Pyongyang.” According to the South Korean military, “judging from the trajectory and range, the missiles launched by North Korea were cruise missiles,” with this being “the first missile launch of this type by North Korea since September 2023.”

At this point, it is not clear why the missiles were launched into the maritime area of the Yellow Sea, which separates the Korean Peninsula from Chinese territory, rather than toward the Sea of Japan.

The cruise missile launches followed a series of military tests that were conducted, according to Pyongyang, “in protest against the joint naval drills carried out by South Korea, the USA, and Japan.” Since the beginning of the year, North Korea has tested a medium-range ballistic missile with a hypersonic warhead, as well as an underwater-based nuclear missile. In particular, Japan’s participation in the naval exercises, desired by the US, was seen by North Korea as a “shameful betrayal of the shared historical memory of the Korean people.” For many decades, the people of the North and South have been united in their hatred of the Japanese invaders, who enslaved and exterminated many millions of Koreans between 1910 and 1945.

And in a gesture full of symbolism, North Korea tore down the Reunification Arch, an imposing monument dedicated to future hypothetical reconciliation with South Korea. The 30-meter-high arch is made in the form of two women in traditional Korean clothes leaning toward each other and holding a map of the reunified Korean Peninsula. Kim Jong-un, North Korea’s leader, has demanded that the country’s constitution be amended to formalize the abandonment of the goal of “peaceful reunification of the two Koreas,” define South Korea as the “first hostile country” to Pyongyang, and articulate a commitment to “fully occupy” the territory in the event of war.