Sunday’s firing of a ballistic missile by North Korea was not wholly unexpected in the context of Pyongyang’s nuclear ambition. True it was not an ICBM test, but it has nonetheless served to ratchet up the pressure on Donald Trump who has vowed what he calls “100 per cent” support for Japan. It was more than a coincidence that he addressed the press conference in the company of the visiting Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe. The missile was launched towards the Sea of Japan (East Sea), whose waters could turn out to be as choppy as those of the South China Sea.

The trilateral equation becomes sharper still with North Korea having posited itself against the US and Japan. Though details about the missile are yet to be determined, it is said to have flown for about 500 kilometres before plunging into the sea. President Kim Jong-Un has without question conveyed a two-pronged message ~ the first to his ebullient counterpart in the White House, now grappling with a welter of sensitive issues and the consistently losing battle in the courts. In parallel, Kim is seemingly anxious to draw global attention to the North’s nuclear and missile capabilities. Arguably, he might have resorted to armed provocation to test the response from the new US administration. He has taken a risk that is dangerously real. While President Trump has not spelt out his pledge on “100 per cent” support to Japan, Prime Minister Abe has condemned the test as “absolutely intolerable” , one that has been a “clear provocation to Japan and its allies”. Assuming that it was “a celebratory launch” to mark the February 16 birthday of Kim Jong-Il, late ruler and father of the present, it begs the query as to whether such muscle-flexing was really necessary at this juncture? It shall not be easy to dispel the charge of provocation.
Aside from the diplomatic implications in the immediate perspective, the missile test flies in the face of UN resolutions that have barred North Korea from any use of ballistic missile technology. It is a measure of the consistent defiance that as many as six sets of UN sanctions, that have been imposed ever since Pyongyang’s first nuclear test in 2006, have failed to halt its nuclear strategy, masquerading as a test of defensive weapons ~ a euphemism if ever there was one.

Last year the country conducted several tests and launches in its quest to develop a nuclear weapons system capable of hitting the US mainland. Washington has reiterated it will never accept North Korea as a nuclear-armed nation; Sunday’s launch poses a test for Trump, who will need the help of China, the North’s closest ally, to deal with the reclusive state. This is the paradox of trans-Atlantic geopolitics.