Name: North Korea fires ballistic missiles in response to US military exercise | DW News
Uploaded: 2026-03-15T23:02:25.000Z
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Turning to North Korea now, where the country's media has broadcast a test launch of ballistic missiles it said took place off its eastern coast on Saturday.

North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Un and his teenage daughter observed the test.

Basic passive voice

It is viewed as a response to joint U. S.

South Korean military maneuvers that Pyongyang sees as an invasion rehearsal.

Citing Kim, North Korean state media says that a strike would obliterate enemy military infrastructure within a 420 kilometer range.

That's enough to reach any part of its rival to the south.

And for more, let's bring in Aidan Foster Carter.

He's a career analyst at Leeds University in England.

We've just mentioned Kim Jong Un and his teenage daughter observing those tests.

Is Kim Jong Un paving the way for his daughter to become his successor?

No other explanation of his conduct or what's been happening over the past nearly two or three years now makes sense, which is that typical North Korean fashion, they don't do anything by chance.

We think she's called Kim Ju A because a certain basketball player called Dennis Rodman said so.

They did just have a party congress where some people fought.

She might be formally named, but that didn't happen and she didn't appear at it.

But she did appear at a military parade afterwards.

But basically she's with him the whole time.

What could this possibly be signaling except a succession?

But when would this succession take place?

I mean, are there any signs that Kim Jong Un is ready or might even need a successor soon?

Or is this preparation just ongoing for years and years and years?

it makes a lot of sense because we've got a bit of history to North Korea now.

I mean, bizarre as it is, this is a technically communist state, which is in practice a hereditary monarchy.

Kim Il Sung, the founder, once he decided to do this rather radical or reactionary thing and have his son Kim Jong Il succeed him, it's hard keeping track of all these Kims.

Kim Jong Il did not give the same favor to his son, Kim Jong Un, the current ruler.

He wasn't even introduced to the North Korean people until barely a year before his father died.

So it seems to me that Kim Jong Un, who Doesn't have a very healthy lifestyle.

A man who smokes in hospitals and kindergartens and is quite large.

It's also bad for the kids, not just his lifestyle that is impacting.

And North Korea does have an anti smoking law, but, you know, is the leader.

So I think he is making long term plans, but very long term.

I mean, if he does live as long as his father and grandfather, he's got another 30 years to go.

I mean, I know we're talking about North Korea, but you mentioned a hereditary monarchy.

So there is nobody else inside who could challenge Kim Jong Un's choice of his teenage daughter.

I wouldn't necessarily say that I would recommend viewers to study their medieval history, be it European, be it Asian.

There's always somebody else who wants it.

In this particular case, it's his sister, Kim Yo Jong.

She's often a spokesperson chosen to be rude about South Korea particularly.

I mean, and again, think of the age of this young woman.

But we think she's only just, just entered her teens.

No way can she have any sort of a power base of her own at this stage.

So there'll be all kinds of court politics going on, which sadly we can see nothing of at all.

Now, Aidan, let's talk a little bit about Iran.

North Korea obviously seen as a close partner of Iran.

And some foreign policy analysts describe the two as part of an axis of upheaval.

How do you think Kim views that war in Iran and how does it affect him and his country?

Not quite as much alarm as, again, thinking back 20 years ago when a different US administration launched an attack on Iraq.

And of course, George Bush used the phrase axis of evil.

Kim Jong Il went to ground for, for a while.

We're seeing him, you know, at all, these missile tests and all that kind of thing.

particularly perhaps Kim Jong Un, probably wonder and worry if Donald Trump is getting an appetite for this.

Having done the easy one, Venezuela, you just swoop in, capture Maduro and Bob's your uncle.

Somebody must have thought he must have thought, okay, we'll do Iran now, which clearly is a very tough nut.

I mean, the difficulty that he's having in Iran will make him or anybody think twice.

I mean, I hope he wouldn't think about North Korea.

He seems to think Kim Jong Un is his friend.

But North Korea, of course, has the nuclear weapons that Iran does not yet have, and

But if you're Kim Jong Un, you see all this happening, you would think twice, wouldn't you?

briefly, if you would, could what he's watching there perhaps also somehow give him an appetite to actually use those missiles?

But with the attention of the international community right now elsewhere, could that be perhaps an effect of what we're seeing now in the Middle East?

Short answer, no access of upheaval or not, China or Russia would never allow it.

They do not want distractions on the Korean peninsula.

His grandfather dragged them into a terrible war in the early 50s.