North Korea tests new high-tech tactical weapon

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un observed the successful test of a "newly developed high-tech tactical" weapon though it was unclear what sort of armament it was.

The North said the test took place at the Academy of National Defence Science and Kim couldn't suppress his "passionate joy" at its success.

The viewing on Friday didn't appear to be a nuclear or missile-related test, a string of which last year had many fearing war before the North turned to engagement and diplomacy early this year.

It didn’t appear to be a test of a nuclear device or a long-range missile with the potential to target the U.S. A string of such tests last year had many fearing war before the North turned to engagement and diplomacy.

Still, any mention of weapons testing could influence the direction of stalled diplomatic efforts spearheaded by Washington and aimed at ridding the North of its nuclear weapons.

The North hasn’t publicly tested any weapons since November 2017, but in recent days Pyongyang reportedly expressed anger at U.S.-led international sanctions and ongoing small-scale military drills between South Korea and the United States.

Earlier this month, North Korea’s Foreign Ministry warned it could bring back its policy of bolstering its nuclear arsenal if it doesn’t receive sanctions relief.

Diplomacy has stalled since a summit between Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump in June, with Washington pushing for more action on nuclear disarmament and the North insisting that the U.S. first approve a peace declaration formally ending the Korean War and lift sanctions.

Even if the test was a message for Washington and Seoul, Friday’s report from the North was noticeably less belligerent than past announcements of weapons tests and didn’t focus on North Korean claims of U.S. and South Korean hostility.

About the test, the U.S. State Department said that American and North Korean officials are talking about implementing the commitments that Trump and Kim made during their June meeting in Singapore. Eugene Lee, a spokeswoman of South Korea’s Unification Ministry, declined to comment on Kim’s inspection of the weapons test.

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, attending a Southeast Asian summit in Singapore, cited the “great progress” made on North Korea but said more had to be done.

A year and a half ago, “nuclear tests were taking place, missiles were flying over Japan and there were threats and propagations against our nation and nations in the region,” Pence said.

“Today, no more missiles are flying, no more nuclear tests, our hostages have come home, and North Korea has begun anew to return fallen American heroes from the Korean War to our soil. We made great progress but there’s more work to be done,” he said.

Pence stressed that U.N. sanctions had to remain enforced.

It’s the first publicly known field inspection of a weapons test by Kim Jong Un since he observed the testing of the Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile in November of last year, according to South Korea’s Unification Ministry.