North Korea fires more missiles as Kim's sister issues Pacific 'firing range' threat - Evening Standard

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orth Korea launched two more ballistic missiles off its east coast on Monday, as the powerful sister of leader Kim Jong Un warned the reclusive nuclear state could turn the Pacific into a “firing range”.

The launches come just two days after North Korea fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) into the sea off Japan’s west coast, prompting the United States to hold joint air exercises with South Korea and separately with Japan on Sunday.

North Korea’s state media confirmed it fired two projectiles from a multiple rocket launcher, aiming at targets 395 km (245 miles) and 337 km (209 miles) away, respectively.

“The 600mm multiple rocket launcher mobilised in the firing... is a means of tactical nuclear weapon,” capable of “paralysing” an enemy airfield, state news agency KCNA said.

Japan’s Defence Ministry said the two missiles, launched around 10pm, reached a maximum altitude of about 100km and 50km, and fell outside Japan’s EEZ (exclusive economic zone).

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Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said he had requested an emergency UN Security Council meeting over the tests. Jiji news agency said the gathering was set for 8pm GMT on Monday.

But prospects for a new round of U.N. sanctions appear slim given the previous vetoes by Russia and China amid the Ukraine crisis and a Sino-U.S. feud over Chinese balloons found in the American skies.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff strongly condemned the launches as a “grave provocation” that should be ceased immediately.

Seoul’s foreign ministry announced sanctions on four individuals and five entities linked to Pyongyang’s weapons programmes on Monday over the latest ICBM and missile tests, in what it called its fastest-ever such response to the North’s provocations.

“Our government has made it clear that North Korea’s provocations will definitely come at a price. Its repeated provocations will result in strengthening South Korea-U.S. deterrence and tightening the global sanctions network,” the ministry said in a statement.

The US Indo-Pacific Command said the latest launch did not pose an immediate threat but highlighted the “destabilising impact” of North Korea’s unlawful weapons programmes.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric urged Pyongyang to “immediately desist from taking any further provocative actions” banned under Security Council resolutions, and resume denuclearisation dialogue.

North Korean leader Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, warned against increased presence of US strategic military assets following the joint air drills with its Asian allies over the weekend.

“The frequency of using the Pacific as our firing range depends upon the US forces’ action character,” she said in a statement carried by KCNA.

The United States and South Korea are set to hold simulated nuclear tabletop exercises aimed at improving operations of American nuclear assets this week, as well as annual springtime Freedom Shield field training in March.

Pyongyang’s foreign ministry said last week it would respond to the planned exercises with “unprecedentedly persistent, strong counteractions.”

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2023-02-20 06:52:43Z
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US warns China not to supply lethal aid to Russia - Financial Times

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2023-02-19 13:10:02Z
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Munich Conference Winds Down As Allies Pledge To Support Ukraine 'As Long As It Takes' - Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty

Russia continued its missile and drone attacks against Ukrainian military and civilian sites on February 18 while top U.S. officials accused Moscow of "crimes against humanity" in the war and said Russian forces had suffered 200,000 casualties as the conflict neared the one-year anniversary.

At least two civilians were wounded and the windows of several homes shattered in the city of Khmelnytskiy in western Ukraine on February 18, as Russia launched missiles from the Black Sea, Ukrainian authorities said.

Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine

RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's ongoing invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war, click here.

At the same time, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, speaking at the Munich Security Conference, said the United States has concluded that Russia committed "crimes against humanity" in its unprovoked war against Ukraine, with its forces having pursued "widespread and systemic" attacks against civilians in the country.

Also in Munich, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said U.S. experts have calculated that Russia has suffered about 200,000 killed or wounded in the war and that more than 1 million Russians "have left their country because they do not want to be part of this war and the direction that the country is being taken."

"Look at what has happened, what [Russian President Vladimir] Putin has done to his own country," Blinken added.

Battlefield claims, including casualty figures on both sides, have been difficult to verify in the war that began with Russia’s invasion on February 24, 2022.

On February 18, Ukraine's air force said its air defenses shot down two of the four Kalibr missiles Russia fired from the Black Sea.

According to Oleksandr Symchyshyn, the mayor of Khmelnytskiy, two explosions were heard in the city, which lies 274 kilometers west of the capital, Kyiv.

"There are three damaged educational institutions and around 10 damaged high-rise apartment blocks. Around 500 windows and balconies have been destroyed," he told Ukraine's national television.

Ukraine's state nuclear company said on February 18 that two Russian cruise missiles flew close to the South Ukraine nuclear plant.

Ukraine briefly issued air-raid alerts nationwide in the morning on February 18 amid the threat of a fresh round of Russian strikes. The sirens went off in all regions with the exception of Kharkiv, Sumy, and Poltava. Most of the alerts were lifted shortly afterward.

The Russian military launched 41 missile strikes on Ukraine during the night on February 16 and Ukrainian air-defense forces shot down 16 of the missiles, according to the General Staff of Ukraine's military.

Russia has launched repeated waves of strikes on Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure, especially on its energy facilities, since early October, at times leaving millions of people without electricity, heating, and water supplies during the cold winter.

Russia's Defense Ministry said on February 18 that its forces had captured Hryanykivka, a village in Ukraine's Kharkiv region, after an offensive push. The claim cannot be independently verified.

Ukraine's General Staff had said in a briefing note earlier in the day that Hrianykivka was being shelled, but it made no mention of a Russian assault.

Much of the discussions at the Munich Security Conference centered on the war in Ukraine and talks of possible increased Western aid to Kyiv.

In her comments, Harris accused Russian forces of "gruesome acts of murder, torture, rape, and deportation, execution-style killings, beatings, and electrocution."

"I say to all those who have perpetrated these crimes and to their superiors who are complicit in these crimes: You will be held to account.... Justice must be served," Harris said.

With reporting by Reuters and AFP

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2023-02-19 13:34:02Z
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China may give Russia weapons for Ukraine war, Anthony Blinken warns - BBC

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By Samuel Horti in London and James Landale in Munich

BBC News

China is considering giving Russia weapons and ammunition for the Ukraine war, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has said.

Mr Blinken told CBS News that Chinese companies were already providing "non-lethal support" to Russia - and new information suggested Beijing could provide "lethal support".

This escalation would mean "serious consequences" for China, he warned.

China has denied reports that Moscow has requested military equipment.

Chinese President Xi Jinping is an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and is yet to condemn Russia's invasion - but he has sought to remain neutral in the conflict and has called for peace.

Mr Blinken was speaking to CBS after he met China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, on Saturday at the Munich Security Conference.

He said that during the meeting he expressed "deep concerns" about the "possibility that China will provide lethal material support to Russia".

"To date, we have seen Chinese companies... provide non-lethal support to Russia for use in Ukraine. The concern that we have now is based on information we have that they're considering providing lethal support," he said.

He did not elaborate on what information the US had received about China's potential plans. When pressed on what the US believed China might give to Russia, he said it would be primarily weapons as well as ammunition.

The US has sanctioned a Chinese company for allegedly providing satellite imagery of Ukraine to the mercenary Wagner Group, which supplies Russia with thousands of fighters.

Mr Blinken told CBS that "of course, in China, there's really no distinction between private companies and the state".

• What support is China offering Russia?
• What weapons are being supplied to Ukraine?
• What is Russia's Wagner Group of mercenaries?

If China provided Russia with weapons, that would cause a "serious problem for us and in our relationship", he added.

Relations between Washington and Beijing were already poor after the US shot down an alleged Chinese spy balloon in early February. Both sides exchanged angry words, but equally both sides appeared embarrassed by the incident and seemed ready to move on.

But if China were to deliver weapons to help Russian forces in Ukraine, then US-Chinese relations would deteriorate much more severely.

Mr Blinken's warning seems to be clearly designed to deter China from doing that.

Mr Blinken also said the US was worried about China helping Russia evade Western sanctions designed to cripple Russia's economy. China's trade with Russia has been growing, and it is one of the biggest markets for Russian oil, gas, and coal.

Nato members, including the US, are sending a variety of weapons, ammunition and equipment to Ukraine, including tanks. They have stopped short of sending fighter jets, and Mr Blinken would not be drawn on whether the US would help other countries supply jets.

"We've been very clear that we shouldn't fixate or focus on any particular weapons system," he said.

He did, however, say that the West must ensure Ukraine had what it needed for a potential counter offensive against Russia "in the months ahead". Russia is currently trying to advance in eastern regions of Ukraine, where some of the fiercest fighting of the war has taken place.

Mr Wang said in Munich yesterday that China had "neither stood by idly nor thrown fuel on the fire" for the Ukraine war, Reuters reported.

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China would publish a document that laid out its position on settling the conflict, Mr Wang said. The document would state that the territorial integrity of all countries must be respected, he said.

"I suggest that everybody starts to think calmly, especially friends in Europe, about what kind of efforts we can make to stop this war," Mr Wang said.

He added that there were "some forces that seemingly don't want negotiations to succeed, or for the war to end soon", but did not say who he meant.

The Chinese President, Mr Xi, is scheduled to deliver a "peace speech" on the anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Friday, 24 February, according to Italy's foreign minister Antonio Tajani.

Mr Tajani told Italian radio that Mr Xi's speech would call for peace without condemning Russia, Reuters reported.

During their meeting, Mr Blinken and Mr Wang also exchanged strong words on the deepening row over an alleged Chinese spy balloon that was shot down over the US.

Mr Blinken said during the meeting that the US would not "stand for any violation of our sovereignty" and said "this irresponsible act must never again occur".

Mr Blinken told CBS that other nations were concerned about what he called China's "surveillance balloon program" across five continents.

Mr Wang, meanwhile, called the episode a "political farce manufactured by the US" and accused them of "using all means to block and suppress China". China has denied sending a spy balloon.

And on Sunday morning, Beijing warned that the US would "bear all the consequences" if it escalated the argument over the balloon. China would "follow through to the end" in the event "the US insists on taking advantage of the issue", it said in a foreign ministry statement reported by Reuters.

The full interview with CBS - the BBC's US broadcasting partner - is due to air on Sunday.

Related Topics

• Russia-Ukraine war
• Xi Jinping
• Antony Blinken
• China
• Russia

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2023-02-19 10:41:38Z
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North Korea fires intercontinental ballistic missile into Japan's territory - The Telegraph

North Korea on Sunday said it had conducted its latest long-range missile test as a surprise drill, saying it demonstrated its capacity for “fatal nuclear counterattack".

The intercontinental ballistic missile, or ICBM, fired Saturday landed in waters within Japan’s exclusive economic zone, according to Japan and South Korea.

It was the North’s first missile test since January 1, and followed warnings by the country of a strong response to upcoming US-South Korean military drills.

Kim Yo Jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, on Sunday warned Washington and Seoul of an “overwhelming response” to perceived “hostility”.

North Korea’s state news agency said its missile had flown for 1 hour, 6 minutes and 55 seconds, as high as 3,584 miles, then accurately hit an area 614 miles away in open waters.

It said the launch of the Hwasong-15, one of North Korea’s three existing ICBMs, was organised “suddenly” without notice on the order of leader Kim Jong Un.

“The important bit here is that the exercise was ordered day-of, without warning to the crew involved,” Ankit Panda, a missile expert at the Washington–based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told Reuters.

“The amount of time between the order and the launch is likely going to be decreased with additional testing.”

Credit: Reuters

Nuclear-armed North Korea launched more than 70 missiles in 2022 — a record number for a single year. These included ICBMs theoretically capable of striking anywhere in the United States.

At the same time, it resumed preparations for its first nuclear test since 2017.

North Korea said the launch of the Hwasong-15 was meant to further boost its “fatal” nuclear attack capacity against its rivals.

It demonstrates the North’s “powerful physical nuclear deterrent”, according to state news agency, Korean Central News Agency, or KCNA. It is also “proof” of its efforts to “turn its capacity of fatal nuclear counterattack on the hostile forces” into an extremely strong one that cannot be countered, it said.

South Korea’s Foreign Minister Park Jin said the Russian invasion of Ukraine had emboldened Pyongyang, with Saturday's launch signalling its intent to conduct “additional provocations”.

"If North Korea conducts the seventh nuclear test, which could happen at any time, it will be a game changer in a sense that North Korea could develop and deploy tactical nuclear missiles," Park told the Munich Security Conference on Saturday.

Leader Kim Jong Un gave orders to launch the missile the day after he took his young daughter Ju Ae to a football match.

It’s the latest in a string of public appearances for the girl, believed to be about 10 years old, that has led to speculation that she is being primed to succeed her father.

The pair were pictured clapping and smiling while watching a ceremonial game between workers from the Cabinet and the defence ministry to celebrate the birthday of Kim’s father, and the country’s previous ruler, the late Kim Jong Il, according to KCNA. 

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2023-02-19 06:34:00Z
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Rishi Sunak: Ukraine's long-term security must be ensured now - BBC

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By James Landale in Munich & Alys Davies

Diplomatic correspondent

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has urged world leaders to send the most advanced weapons to Ukraine now in order to secure its long-term future.

Mr Sunak told the Munich Security Conference that allies must give the country "advanced, Nato-standard capabilities".

He said now was the time to "double down" on military support.

Throughout the conference, Ukraine's allies have reiterated the case for defending the country.

The three-day gathering to discuss global security, taking place in Germany ahead of the first anniversary of Russia's invasion, provided a key test of Western support for Kyiv as both sides in the war prepare for spring offensives.

Ukraine's allies tried to demonstrate their resolve and tried to convince the Russian government that they will not give up or give in, even if the cost in "blood and treasure" increases in coming months.

Most of those who attended the conference - from heads of state and ministers to diplomats and spies - were from Europe or the US, including US Vice-President Kamala Harris and nearly 30 European heads of government. No Russian officials were invited.

• The challenges of giving fighter jets to Ukraine
• What weapons are being supplied to Ukraine?

Mr Sunak had said he wanted to "make sure other countries follow our lead" in providing battle tanks, and training soldiers and aviators on Nato-standard aircrafts.

In his speech in Germany, he said: "Ukraine needs more artillery, armoured vehicles and air defences, so now is the time to double down on our military support.

"When Putin started this war, he gambled that our resolve would falter. Even now he is betting we will lose our nerve.

"But we proved him wrong then, and we will prove him wrong now."

Calling for a new Nato charter to provide assurances of long-term support, Mr Sunak said allies "must demonstrate that we'll remain by their side, willing and able to help them defend their country again and again".

He went on to say that, as well as having a military strategy "to gain a decisive advantage on the battlefield", allies also needed "to rebuild the international order on which our collective security depends".

Mr Sunak said international law needed to be upheld in order to hold Russia to account. He also called for "a new framework" for Ukraine's long-term security, and said the international community's response had not been strong enough against Russia's aggression.

Before his speech, Mr Sunak met German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and both agreed on the need to sustain "the record level of international support for Ukraine", a Downing Street spokeswoman said.

Reuters

Mr Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also agreed on "the importance of giving Ukraine the military momentum they need to secure victory against tyranny" in a meeting on the conference sidelines, said No 10.

The unspoken question in Munich was what will happen if the participants meet this time next year and the war is still going on.

Of particular concern was whether the political and economic costs of the war could prove too much to bear, as the Russian leadership assumes, or the western alliance will stand firm behind Ukraine.

The uncertainty around these issues is another reason why allies want to step up support now, to ensure Ukraine can see off any Russian offensive and launch a counter-attack on its own. President Volodymyr Zelensky is not the only one urging speed.

Last week, the Ukrainian leader visited the UK, as well as Paris and Brussels, where he appealed for European leaders to supply his country with modern fighter jets.

The UK is to start training Ukrainian forces to fly Nato-standard jets and Mr Sunak has said "nothing is off the table".

But Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has said there will be no immediate transfer of UK fighter jets to Ukraine.

He told the BBC it could take months to train pilots and the UK was instead focused on using alternative provision of air cover to Ukraine.

Some Nato member countries are also worried that giving jets to Ukraine would be viewed as escalating the war, risking direct confrontation between the Western military alliance and Russia.

Since Russia invaded on 24 February last year, the UK has spent £2.3bn on military assistance, making the country the second biggest donor behind the US. The government has said it plans to match this spending again this year.

Military equipment provided by the UK so far includes tanks, air defence systems and artillery.

However, Kyiv has become increasingly frustrated by the time Western weapons have taken to arrive. Deliveries of battle tanks - promised last month by countries including Germany, the US and the UK - are still thought to be weeks away from arriving on the battlefield.

During Mr Sunak's meeting with Ms Von der Leyen, the pair also had what Downing Street described as a "positive discussion" about fixing issues with the Northern Ireland Protocol.

They agreed there had been "very good progress to find solutions" but that "intensive work in the coming days is still needed" to get a deal on post-Brexit trading arrangements over the line, according to No 10.

It comes after sources suggested that a deal could be reached between the UK and the European Union as early as next week, after more than a year of negotiations.

Almost one year on since the start of the conflict, what questions do you have about the war in Ukraine?

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Related Topics

• Russia-Ukraine war
• Rishi Sunak
• Ukraine

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2023-02-18 17:55:42Z
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Russia has committed crimes against humanity, says Kamala Harris - The Guardian

The Biden administration has formally concluded that Russia committed crimes against humanity during its nearly year-long invasion of Ukraine, Kamala Harris has said.

“In the case of Russia’s actions in Ukraine we have examined the evidence, we know the legal standards, and there is no doubt: these are crimes against humanity,” the US vice-president and former prosecutor said in prepared remarks delivered in a speech at the Munich security conference on Saturday.

“And I say to all those who have perpetrated these crimes, and to their superiors who are complicit in those crimes – you will be held to account.”

The US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, who is also attending the conference, said members of Russia’s forces had “committed execution-style killings of Ukrainian men, women, and children; torture of civilians in detention through beatings, electrocution, and mock executions; rape; and, alongside other Russian officials, have deported hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian civilians to Russia, including children who have been forcibly separated from their families”.

“These acts are not random or spontaneous; they are part of the Kremlin’s widespread and systematic attack against Ukraine’s civilian population”, Blinken added.

The official determination, which came at the end of a legal and factual analysis led by the US state department, carries no immediate consequences for the war.

Washington hopes the determination could help further isolate the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and galvanise legal efforts to hold members of his government accountable through international courts and sanctions.

Harris’s speech came as senior western leaders met in Munich to assess Europe’s worst conflict since the second world war.

She said Russia was a “weakened” country after Joe Biden led a coalition to punish Putin for the invasion, but Russia is intensifying assaults in Ukraine’s east.

Ukraine is planning a spring counteroffensive, for which it is seeking more, heavier and longer-range weapons from its western allies.

The war has killed tens of thousands, uprooted millions from their homes, pummelled the global economy and made Putin a pariah in the west.

Washington had already concluded that Russian forces were guilty of war crimes, as had a UN-mandated investigation, but the Biden administration conclusion that Russia’s actions amount to “crimes against humanity” implies a legal finding that acts from murder to rape are widespread, systematic and intentionally directed against civilians. In international law, it is seen as a more serious offence.

The UN-backed commission of inquiry on Ukraine has not yet concluded that the war crimes it says it has identified amount to crimes against humanity.

In her remarks, Harris cited as “barbaric and inhumane” the scores of victims found in Bucha shortly after Russia’s invasion last February; the 9 March bombing of a Mariupol maternity hospital that killed three people, including a child; and the sexual assault of a four-year-old by a Russian soldier that was identified by the UN report.

Organisations supported by the US Agency for International Development have documented more than 30,000 war crimes incidents since the invasion, according to the US government. Ukrainian officials said they were investigating the shelling of the city of Bakhmut this week as a possible war crime.

Russia, which says it is conducting a “special military operation” in Ukraine to eliminate threats to its security and to protect Russian speakers, has denied intentionally targeting civilians or committing war crimes.

Harris said: “Let us all agree: on behalf of all the victims, known and unknown, justice must be served.”

The Biden administration has sought to bring alleged war criminals to justice, including training Ukrainian investigators, imposing sanctions, blocking visas and hiking penalties under US war crimes laws.

Washington has spent $40m (£33m) on the efforts so far and says it is working with Congress to secure an additional $38m.

But the Biden administration’s ability to enforce any such efforts beyond its borders – and certainly within Russia – is limited and collecting evidence in Ukraine has proven difficult.

International legal bodies are also constrained. At the international criminal court, for instance, jurisdiction extends only to member states and states that have agreed to its jurisdiction, such as Ukraine but not Russia. Kyiv has been pushing for a new international war crimes organisation to focus on the Russian invasion, which Moscow has opposed.

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2023-02-18 17:48:00Z
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