Kim Jong-un declares North Korea must keep up drive for nuclear weapons

The North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, has called on his military to continue nuclear weapons development after issuing orders for the latest test-firing of ballistic missiles.

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“He stressed the need to continue making miraculous achievements in bolstering up the nuclear force one after another in this historic year,” the official North Korean KCNA news agency said.

The statement came after North Korea test-fired three missiles into the sea on Monday as world leaders met for the G20 summit in China.

Describing the performance of the rockets as “perfect”, KCNA said Kim expressed “great satisfaction over the successful successive firing drill of ballistic rockets”.

South Korea’s defence ministry said they may have been Rodong missiles with a range of 1,000km (620 miles), and that they were fired without navigational warning to Japan.

“North Korea’s ballistic missile launch is a direct violation of UN security council resolutions, aimed at showing off its nuclear and missile capabilities during the G20 summit,” a ministry spokesman said.

The defence ministry in Tokyo said the three missiles were estimated to have fallen into Japan’s maritime exclusive economic zone.

“The ministry expresses serious concern over the missile launches as they pose a grave threat to Japan’s national security,” said a ministry statement.

The US and Japan lodged a protest against Monday’s test-firing and requested a meeting of the UN security council in New York. The 15-member body was scheduled to convene on Tuesday to discuss the test.

North Korea has conducted a series of missile tests during 2016 in defiance of UN sanctions imposed after its fourth nuclear test in January.

In August it fired a submarine-launched ballistic missile from the north-eastern port of Sinpo. That missile flew 500km towards Japan, far exceeding the range of the North’s previous sub-launched missiles.

Leader Kim Jong-un described the August test as the “greatest success” and said it put the US mainland within striking range. The launch was widely condemned by the US and other major powers, but analysts saw it as a clear step forward for North Korea’s nuclear strike ambitions.