MESOP MIDEAST WATCH Top of the Agenda – North Korea Tests Biggest Missile Since 2017

The United States reportedly called for North Korea to join direct talks (Reuters) on its nuclear activities after Pyongyang tested an intermediate-range ballistic missile (Nikkei) yesterday, the largest in a string of launches this month.

The tests come ahead of South Korea’s presidential election in March and follow reports that Philip Goldberg, a staunch supporter of sanctions against Pyongyang, will be appointed U.S. ambassador to South Korea. South Korean President Moon Jae-in said yesterday that North Korea appears to be moving closer to ending a self-imposed moratorium (Yonhap) on nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile tests.

“The dramatic imbalance between U.S. forces and the North Korean military incentivizes Pyongyang not only to continue to expand its nuclear weapons arsenal but to consider using it first in a crisis,” Victoria University of Wellington’s Van Jackson writes fot Foreign Affairs.

“North Korea’s hard-line position is underpinned by the common front drawn by China and Russia. Chinese President Xi Jinping has grown more supportive of North Korea and more combative with the U.S. since last year,” the University of North Korean Studies’ Gabriela Bernal writes for Nikkei.

This Backgrounder unpacks North Korea’s military capabilities.