https://nyti.ms/2oNK3Bf
SEOUL, South Korea — The Trump administration on Tuesday confirmed North Korea’s claim that it had launched an intercontinental ballistic missile, and it told Pyongyang that the United States would use “the full range of capabilities at our disposal against the growing threat.”
The administration followed up that warning on Wednesday morning with a joint military exercise in which United States and South Korean forces fired ballistic missiles in the waters along the Korean Peninsula’s east coast.
But North Korea reaffirmed Wednesday that it would never deviate from its determination to bolster its nuclear and missile abilities as long as the United States’ “hostile policy” and “nuclear threat” persisted.
The North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency said its new intercontinental ballistic missile, the Hwasong-14, was capable of hitting the “heart of the United States” with “large heavy nuclear warheads.” The launch, according to the agency, successfully tested the functions of the missile’s two propulsive stages and the warhead’s ability to endure the intense heat and vibrations as it entered the earth’s atmosphere.
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On Wednesday morning, North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, taunted the United States, saying the launch was a Fourth of July “gift” to the Trump administration. The Korean Central News Agency said the country’s citizens were happy with the “great timing” of their leader’s decision to “hit the arrogant Americans in the nose” by conducting the first ICBM test to coincide with Independence Day.
“The American bastards must be quite unhappy after closely watching our strategic decision,” the news agency quoted Mr. Kim as saying after watching the missile test on Tuesday. “I guess they are not too happy with the gift package we sent them for the occasion of their Independence Day. We should often send them gift packages so they won’t be too bored.”
Mr. Kim made those remarks “with a guffaw,” the news agency said.
The joint missile exercise by the United States and South Korea was first proposed by the South Korean president, Moon Jae-in, and endorsed by President Trump, Mr. Moon’s office said.
Acting on an American request, the United Nations Security Council, which has repeatedly penalized North Korea over its violations of a ban on nuclear and missile testing, will meet in an emergency session on Wednesday afternoon.
The United Nations secretary general, António Guterres, sharply criticized the North Korean launch. “This action is yet another brazen violation of Security Council resolutions and constitutes a dangerous escalation of the situation,” he said in a statement. Mr. Guterres called on North Korea to “cease further provocative actions and comply fully with its international obligations.”