North Korea, in recent years, has heightened its military progress, launching multiple new ballistic missiles with the potential of destructing its arch-rivals, like the US. This tactic of testing new weapon systems has further isolated North Korea from the globe, leaving it in a crippling economic crisis.
Last year, North Korea, in a dramatic move, successfully tested four Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBM) to showcase its regional military strength. Likewise, launched in February 2023, Hwasong-17 was the first full ICBM test since 2017, having the potential of covering the entire US mainland. Following it, Hwasong-18, which North Korea launched in April, proved a lethal ICBM. This astonishing ICBM was designed to use solid fuel to further make it more powerful. Another Hwasong-18 was launched in July and had the capability to cover a range of 1,002 kilometres. Most recently, in December, North Korea again unveiled another Hwasong-18 that can cover the whole US.
On the other hand, these military developments pose a significant regional threat and can further damage relationships between North Korea and its neighbours. In this context, the Japanese Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, termed the back-to-back launches of such sophisticated ballistic missiles as a “threat to peace and stability”. The West, particularly the US, is concerned with such an advanced weaponry system. Since its creation in 1945 after World War II, North Korea has been under fierce arms competition and has a keen desire to become a nuclear state despite mounting international pressures. North Korea does not care how their aggressive approaches can hinder their economic progress, leaving its people in fragile conditions.
It must be remembered that both South and North Korea were formed in the same year, yet the South surpassed the North politically, economically, and above all, militarily. In this connection, none of the hypotheses of ignorance, culture, or geography are responsible for the downfall of North Korea, but it is the leaders of that nation who preferred weapons to peace, progress, and prosperity. There is a massive difference between the lifestyles of the people of North and South Korea. The people on the South of the 38th parallel line live ten times better and more prosperous lives than the people on the northern sphere. Thus, the leaders of North Korea should take some pragmatic measures to soften or possibly halt its military developments and mend its ties with the international community.
The global landscape has entirely changed, and the nations are moving towards economic stability. North Korea should also follow suit to convert its focus from developing fatal weapons to strengthening its economy.
SHEHZAD AHMED BROHI,
Larkana.
