North Korea does second missile test in a week
North Korea today did its second short-range missile test in the past week.
They launched two missiles, each traveling about 260 miles.
This is clearly a negotiating tactic on their part. This spat of launches now might also have been encouraged by their sponsor, China, which is also in negotiations with the Trump administration about trade. China gains negotiating leverage with Trump in that it can say: Give us what we want and we will pressure North Korea to cease missile tests.
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North Korea today did its second short-range missile test in the past week.
They launched two missiles, each traveling about 260 miles.
This is clearly a negotiating tactic on their part. This spat of launches now might also have been encouraged by their sponsor, China, which is also in negotiations with the Trump administration about trade. China gains negotiating leverage with Trump in that it can say: Give us what we want and we will pressure North Korea to cease missile tests.
Readers!
My annual February birthday fund-raising drive for Behind the Black is now over. Thank you to everyone who donated or subscribed. While not a record-setter, the donations were more than sufficient and slightly above average.
As I have said many times before, I can’t express what it means to me to get such support, especially as no one is required to pay anything to read my work. Thank you all again!
For those readers who like my work here at Behind the Black and haven't contributed so far, please consider donating or subscribing. My analysis of space, politics, and culture, taken from the perspective of an historian, is almost always on the money and ahead of the game. For example, in 2020 I correctly predicted that the COVID panic was unnecessary, that the virus was apparently simply a variation of the flu, that masks were not simply pointless but if worn incorrectly were a health threat, that the lockdowns were a disaster and did nothing to stop the spread of COVID. Every one of those 2020 conclusions has turned out right.
Your help allows me to do this kind of intelligent analysis. I take no advertising or sponsors, so my reporting isn't influenced by donations by established space or drug companies. Instead, I rely entirely on donations and subscriptions from my readers, which gives me the freedom to write what I think, unencumbered by outside influences.
You can support me either by giving a one-time contribution or a regular subscription. There are four ways of doing so:
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This may also have been triggered by Iran, their potential buyer of nuclear expertise.
We just tested 2 different Minuteman III missiles, this month alone.
The long-range missiles the Norks were testing a couple years back – and suddenly getting successful flights out of – had engines that looked a lot like those of prior-generation Soviet/Russian ICBM’s. These newest missiles being tested look very much like recent Russian tactical rockets. It seems the Norks have been getting some non-trivial sub rosa help from our Russkie enemies since Mr. Trump has been President.
Mr. Trump has made some headway in negotiating with the DPRK, but I think the semi-covert backing of Russia will probably preclude any really substantive deal. If Kim thought he was actually entirely on his own the outcome would likely be different, but the knowledge that he has some Russian support changes the negotiating calculus and works heavily against a de-nuclearization/de-missilization outcome. Mr. Trump will, no doubt, continue his efforts toward a peaceful resolution for the remainder of his first term, but I think a military solution is the highest likelihood eventual outcome. That would be a project for Mr. Trump’s second term.